BX Creek Falls Trail (Photo credit: TripAdvisor.com)

By Kevin Rothwell

Three projects

Additional funds for Greater Vernon trail upgrades

Apr 8, 2021 | 5:00 PM

A provincial grant of $210,000 to connect the Kal/Crystal Waters Trail above Kekuli Bay Provincial Park to Bailey Road west of Highway 97, has freed up funding to do some other trail projects in the region.

The Greater Vernon Advisory Committee (GVAC) will recommend to the Regional District of North Okanagan (RDNO) that $407,000 be spent on three projects brought forward from the 2022 and 2023 budget years.

The perimeter trail at the Greater Vernon Athletic Park will be upgraded at a cost of $180,000.

A staff report indicates that the original construction specifications for this pathway did not include a sufficient subgrade to support reasonable longevity of the surface. The project will produce a high quality asphalt pathway with an expected life span of 20 years with proper care and maintenance.

“Included in the project is removal of the existing pathway, excavation to install a nine inch lift of engineered subgrade and a three inch lift of hot-in-place asphalt. The trail receives summer use and is cleared in the winter months to provide a safe walkable perimeter trail for the public,” the report stated.

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Upgrading the BX Trail stairs to the lower BX Falls will be funded at a cost of $175,000.

The project will replace the aging staircase that currently allows access to the lower portion of the BX Falls Section of the BX Creek Trail. RDNO staff will work with the consultant to design and construct a similar structure to what was completed in 2019 at the BX Falls site.

“The work will consist of a combination of timber staircases, precast concrete cribbed steps, guardrails and wire mesh retaining structures. The combination of these elements will produce a long lasting, low maintenance asset that will provide greater access to the BX Creek Trail,” RDNO staff said.

$52,000 of the $80,000 Grey Canal Trail Improvement budget originally scheduled for 2022 was brought forward to be completed in 2021.

This partial budget will still allow many repairs/replacement of current infrastructure including but limited to board-walks, cribbed steps, retaining structures and trail surfacing. Staff are currently conducting trail inspection and are identifying locations for upgrades.

An amount of $200,000 had originally been set aside for unspecified trail improvements, combined with $207,000 that had been budgeted for the Bailey Road trail connection.

The work can be completed without additional taxation.