Scott Stanfield
Record Staff
In a special council meeting Monday, Courtenay council endorsed federal grant applications for three initiatives: Fifth Street Bridge rehabilitation/recoating; a Complete Streets project; and an integrated storm water management plan.
Complete Streets is an approach to designing, building and retrofitting roads to ensure their accessibility to all modes of transportation and people of all ages and abilities. Council selected a 530-metre stretch along Fifth Street from Fitzgerald to Menzies as the preferred corridor. The cost would be $3.253 million.
Coun. Erik Eriksson was the lone member of council opposed to the endorsement. Instead of a recoat, he wants to see the Fifth Street Bridge replaced by a new structure.
The City is applying to the Gas Tax — Strategic Priorities Fund which assists investments that are large in scale, region-wide in impact or innovative.
For successful applicants, the grant program will provide about half of $28 million funding to B.C. municipalities during the first intake. It provides up to 100 per cent of funding for eligible projects.
reporter@comoxvalleyrecord.com