The reason is to give the project a better chance of getting funding from the Canada Infrastructure program.
The North Cariboo Joint Planning Committee has endorsed a funding application of nine million dollars.
Quesnel Mayor Bob Simpson…
“It’s a fund that is only offering 135 million dollars that will fund 70 percent of the project, and if we added the water slide, we would be asking for ten percent of the total funds available for the entire province for this one project. We have to realistic and practical that actually get us the actual main renovations that need to be done .”
The total cost of the project is now estimated at $17,478,216.
That figure would jump to more than twenty million with the waterslide.
North Cariboo taxpayers will be asked to borrow up to eight million dollars in a referendum with the remaining 478 thousand dollars and change coming from CRD gas tax funds.
Quesnel City Councillor Ron Paull, now that the waterslide isn’t included, is a little concerned about the referendum…
“The water slide would have the greatest level of appeal, so if we eliminate the waterslide from that project then it’s not as appealing, so I guess what I was asking was there something that could be traded out for the water slide, but I think I got my answer that the waterslide is kind of a nice to have but all of the other amenities that go with the expansion project are needs, rather than wants.”
Paull says he’s also concerned that they seem to be getting stacked up with a whole bunch of capital projects…
“And which one comes first. We’ve got the West Fraser Center, now we’ve got the Public Works Facility that has been approved and now we’re looking at a major renovation to the Rec Centre, so I am sort of wondering how is all of this going to shake down.”
Simpson says the water slide was the only stand alone part of the project, and he says they can always add it later on.
He says another option, if taxpayers really want the wateslide, would be to ask to borrow more money.
Simpson says the upgrade will still change the pool into a phenomenally different facility…
“It’s a very large project that would see us not only improve the existing pool, the existing change rooms, make significant improvements to the electrical and HVAC systems and water systems, it would also see a very significant addition to the leisure pool with a lazy river, with lanes in the warm water for those who can’t swim in the main pool, to do exercises and so on.”
He says it would give them much more programming capability, be a much more interesting facility for kids and families coming to Quesnel, and be a much better facility for seniors to stay active.
In addition to the application, both the CRD Chair and Mayor Bob Simpson will write letters going into more detail as to why this project is important.
Simpson says there will be a lot of competition for this money and he feel they need to tell a better story than what the application, which is character restrictive, allows.
The application deadline is January 26th