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BX Ranch Dog Park (Vernon Matters photo)
By Pete McIntyre
BX Dog park

Sediment pond project will impact dog park on more days

Aug 12, 2022 | 12:00 PM

Dog lovers are having to find new places to walk their pooch as a long-awaited City of Vernon project gets underway.

Site preparations have started for constructing a sediment pond at BX Dog Park, along Upper BX Creek.

The project will decrease the amount of sediment downstream, reducing the chances of flooding where the creek flows through Vernon.

Concept design of BX Park sediment pond (Image credit: City of Vernon)

The popular park will be closed while construction is taking place for safety reasons, which now also includes some Sundays.

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“Originally, construction was scheduled to take place Monday to Saturday, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. However, in order to meet strict permitting deadlines and environmental regulation requirements that are related to this type of project, the contractor has confirmed that construction will have to take place on some Sundays,” a city news release stated.

The park will be closed when workers are on site and will be re-opened for use during non-construction hours.

During the project, residents and visitors can visit one of the other dog-friendly parks, trails, or beaches within the Greater Vernon area. A list of available locations can be found on Tourism Vernon’s website.

Dog-friendly locations include, but are not limited to:

  • Mutrie Road Park (east end of 43rd Ave and right turn onto Mutrie Rd)
  • Mission Hill Park (3900 15th Ave)
  • Becker Park (behind the Vernon Recreation Centre, near 39th Avenue)
  • Polson Park (2600 Hwy 6)
  • The Grey Canal Tail
  • Middleton Mountain Park and Trails
  • Kalamalka Lake Provincial Park pet beach
  • Ellison Provincial Park sandy (pet) beach

The city received a provincial/UBCM grant for $747,000 for the sediment pond project.

Flooding due to sediment has occurred along BX Creek during freshets in 2017, 2018 and 2020.

More information about the project and the city’s current infrastructure projects is available at www.vernon.ca/capitalworks.

by Pete McIntyre
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