Eric Kalnins flips through the digital map on the new wayfinding board outside the Lafarge Lake-Douglas SkyTrain station.
The community information hub is the first welcoming stop for visitors jumping off the Evergreen Extension terminus, showing points of interest for recreation, dining and shopping as well as an events listing guide.
The board is the only one of its kind in the city, designed to show visitors how to get to their destination and learn about what’s happening.
And it comes just as the municipality launches its seventh edition of Tourism Coquitlam: Travel and Experience Guide — a production in partnership with The Tri-City News — that aims to showcase the best of the city.
For this publication, released the same week as the 31st annual Festival du Bois in Maillardville, the city’s tourism officer points readers to three areas of interest: patios, live entertainment and ethnic cuisine.
Restaurants with outdoor eating are within walking distance in the City Centre, Austin Heights and Maillardville neighbourhoods, and Kalnins devoted a page in the glossy magazine to al fresco socializing and dining — although some might want to wait for the weather to warm up.
Festivals and events also play a prominent role, with numerous activities happening throughout the year, especially at Town Centre Park (the green space hosts ScotFestBC: The British Columbia Highland Games, Canada Day party, Lights at Lafarge and Kaleidoscope arts festival, among other events).
As for the multicultural dining, Kalnins focuses on dishes from Korea as Coquitlam boasts one of the largest Korean communities in Canada.
Meanwhile, the 48-page guide is the first publication to “key back” to the city’s tourism website (visitcoquitlam.ca), which launched last year, offering a wider description on landmarks, businesses and upcoming events.
The guide cost $25,000 and will be available at civic centres, hotels, malls, Vancouver International Airport and tourism points in B.C.
Kalnins, who was hired in 2014, said the municipality typically runs out of its 35,000 copies. For a copy of the guide, email [email protected].
