Sidney looking to demolish or replace iconic wharf
For more than a century, a wharf has stood at the bottom of Beacon Avenue in Sidney, B.C. Now, with the current wharf over 60 years old, the municipality is considering whether to replace or demolish the aging structure.
A recent engineering report found the aging pier will require a major investment to extend its life past 2028.
The current wharf saw its last major renovation more than 60 years ago. Sidney’s Mayor says more than $400,000 has been spent to maintain the wharf and keep it safe since it was acquired from the federal government in 2006.
"Condition assessments over the last 10 years and spending more than $400,000 indicates that it is nearing the end of its life and can’t be maintained at that level of maintenance," said Sidney Mayor Cliff McNeil-Smith.
"We have five to eight years left in the current wharf, estimated,” he said. "Council fully appreciates that the wharf is iconic and special in our community and we wanted to start the process early and take the necessary time to consider the future of the wharf with input from the community."
McNeil-Smith says the preliminary options being considered for the site are: a wharf on a pile structure – similar to the current wharf, a wharf on a "rubble mound" structure, and an option for a floating wharf.
He says a fourth option being considered is demolishing and not replacing the more than six-decades-old structure.
"We know we have to take into account climate change, rising sea levels and storm surges," said McNeil-Smith.
"The current design, or the 'rumble mound' structure, would require (the wharf) to be over two metres higher than it currently is," he said. "Council doesn’t really feel that’s compatible with the adjacent uses, so we’ve considered the floating option and the option of no replacement."
McNeil-Smith says the estimated cost for the remaining floating wharf option could range between $10- to $17 million.
Due to the iconic status of the historic Beacon Avenue Wharf and estimated cost of replacing it, the town has just finished a considerable round of public consultation.
"The community engagement was significant – we had open houses here at (Beacon Park), we had a community survey, and we had a special edition of our 'Town Talk' with lots of information," said McNeil-Smith.
"We’ve seen over 1,000 (survey) responses and all of the individual responses will come before council," he added.
The mayor says town staff are reviewing the responses and will provide a report to town council at a meeting in November. He says council is not up against a deadline to make a decision on the future of the wharf.
"We haven’t set a specific time," said McNeil-Smith. "We wanted to start the process early and take the necessary time."
"We need to plan ahead because if the current structure would have to be removed, we might have to get approvals with regards to building on the water and so it could take some time to put the future in place," he said.
McNeil-Smith says the town does not currently have a replacement fund for the Beacon Wharf. He says should an option be chosen to demolish or replace the existing wharf, the town would need to borrow the funds.
"If there was support for a particular option and we went to borrowing, the community would actually have input on us approving that borrowing," said the mayor. "We appreciate that it's part of our small town, part of our seaside character – has been for decades now – but this investment will be to build for the next 50 years."
More information on the Beacon Wharf replacement project can be found on the Town of Sidney website.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Former Air Canada employees among suspects identified in gold heist at Pearson Airport: police
Nine people have been arrested in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year, Peel Regional Police said Wednesday.
MPs summon ArriveCan contractor to the House to be admonished in rare parliamentary display
Enacting an extraordinarily rarely used parliamentary power, MPs have summoned an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons on Wednesday afternoon to be admonished publicly for failing to answer their questions.
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
Gas prices across Ontario expected to climb to levels not seen since 2022, analyst says
Ontario is going to see a big jump at the pumps later this week as gas prices in the province hit levels not seen in nearly two years, according to one industry analyst.
Ancient skeletons unearthed in France reveal Mafia-style killings
More than 5,500 years ago, two women were tied up and probably buried alive in a ritual sacrifice, using a form of torture associated today with the Italian Mafia, according to an analysis of skeletons discovered at an archaeological site in southwest France.
'Enormous sum of money': Actor Hugh Grant settles privacy lawsuit against tabloid
British actor Hugh Grant has settled a lawsuit against the publisher of Rupert Murdoch's tabloid newspaper, The Sun, over claims journalists used private investigators to tap his phone and burgle his house, he said on Wednesday.
O.J. Simpson was chilling with a beer on a couch before Easter, lawyer says. 2 weeks later he was dead
O.J. Simpson's last robust discussion with his longtime lawyer was just before Easter, at the country club home Simpson leased southwest of the Las Vegas Strip. About a week later, on April 5, a doctor said Simpson was 'transitioning.'
Some of the winners and losers in the 2024 federal budget
With a variety of fiscal and policy measures announced in the federal budget, winners include small businesses and fintech companies while losers include the tobacco industry and Canadian pension funds.
U.K. plan to phase out smoking for good passes first hurdle
The British government's plan for a landmark smoking ban that aims to stop young people from ever smoking cleared its first hurdle in Parliament on Tuesday despite vocal opposition from within Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party.