CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — The eastern end of Charlottetown will be getting a new bridge next year.
City council recently approved a recommendation from its standing committee on parks, recreation and leisure to replace the Wright’s Creek Bridge at a cost of $1.3 million.
The bridge, located just past Ecole Francois-Buote on Acadian Drive, used to lead to a provincial landfill site. Deemed unsafe for vehicles, the wooden timber structure is restricted these days to pedestrians and is part of the active transportation path that circles Andrew’s Pond.
The city is not on the hook for the entire $1.3-million price tag. The budget for the project was approved under the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) meaning the city will be responsible for roughly one-third of the estimated cost.
“It is a large project,’’ said Frank Quinn, manager of the parks, recreation and leisure department. “It’s the only bridge the city owns.’’
The long-range goal is to develop a park on the East Royalty side of the bridge where the city has 55 acres to play with.
Coun. Terry Bernard, chairman of the parks, recreation and leisure committee and the representative for the area on council, said the idea is to continue developing walking and cycling trails and have areas for tobogganing and skiing. There are currently about five to seven trails around Andrew’s Pond.
“I’ve been pushing this for many years,’’ Bernard told The Guardian, adding that rebuilding the bridge is an attempt to make the future park more accessible to area residents. “It’s the beginning of something that people have been wanting for the past 20 to 30 years."
Mayor Philip Brown, who sits on the committee, noted there is a growing number of people who use mountain bikes and drive in all types of weather conditions.
“They’re looking to do something out in that area as well,’’ Brown said.
The bridge replacement project would involve building a structure that is wooden timber. It would be used by vehicle traffic with a dedicated lane across for pedestrians and cyclists.
The project will now move into the design engineering phase, which will cost $76,000, with plans ready to go by next spring when the project will go to tender.
The committee also dealt with a request from Coun. Mitchell Tweel, former chairman of the committee, who wants the city to clear snow off the Orlebar Park and Longworth Field pathways.
Quinn said the pathways simply aren’t designed to handle large snow-clearing equipment, even machines as small as sidewalk plows, especially when the ground is wet from ice and snow.
However, Bernard said the city should look at acquiring a plow designed for fragile ground when council circles around to the capital budget.
– Dave Stewart covers Charlottetown city council for The Guardian. He can be reached by email at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter at @DveStewart
