Project more than 50 funded
The first phase of construction on the Okanagan Rail Trail is expected to start this fall.
That news was relayed to council in an update from project manager Andrew Gibbs this week.
He says the community fundraising campaign has been quite successful.
"The target is $7.86 million, they're one year in and they've raised $4.5 million, so they're 57% of the way there," he said.
"That's really good news, and that support from the public and the community is really critical to getting this done. None of the local governments involved have contributed tax money to the development of it yet. So this is all a grassroots campaign."
And thanks to that fundraising success, the first phase will get underway in 2017.
"It'll be undertaken in phases – we don't have all the money now, but we'll pick away at it as we can. We envision two phases – essentially one this year, and one next year," he said.
Gibbs says another reason for the construction timing is that some of the funding from higher levels of government has to be used by later this year or early 2018.
The first phase in Kelowna will run from Airport Way down to Dilworth Drive.
Gibbs says right now, work is being done on the initial design.
"We're expecting it to be completed towards the end of July, and they'll update the the cost estimate at that time," he said
"Also, as part of the preliminary design, we'll have a public consultation process in each community, and then following that we'll be preparing bid documents to go out to tender for the initial stage of construction. We kind of have to start in the fall, because we've got a number of grants, some of which are due at the end of November, and some of which are due at the end of March next year."
The entire trail will be about 4.6 metres wide, with a fine gravel base, though city staff may ask council for funding to pave the stretch through Kelowna.
