Walkers, runners and cyclists will be able to use the full Shoreline Park trail in time for Port Moody RibFest this weekend.
“We had really good cooperation from the construction contractor,” said Julie Pavey, manager of parks for the city.
The $612,000 project to widen the trail from Rocky Point Park to the CP Rail tracks will enhance safety, Pavey said, as the trail has been raised in some areas, swales put in to drain the pavement and bumps and low spots have been eliminated.
Done in two phases to work around the hugely popular Golden Spike Days and RibFest, the work concluded ahead of schedule, according to Chad Siemens, a project manager with the city's engineering and operations department.
Part of the trail in the forested area has been open since the beginning of July, with works crews putting the finishing touches on the Murray Street portion this week.
And while the project cost $136,400 more than envisioned, grants, including an amenity contribution from the Panatch Group, and money from the Ministry of Transportation BikeBC program, will cover the shortfall and the project will actually cost PoMo taxpayers $318,900 less than was planned.
Because the trail is located near a known archaeological site, First Nations monitors and an archeologist were brought in to keep an eye on construction work but nothing was disturbed, Siemens said. As well, extra effort was made to protect sensitive habitat alongside the trail, said Pavey.
“There was preliminary work done on the trail to look for anything that thad to be worked around on the route,” she said, noting that tree and bird nesting surveys were done and the city’s arborist brought in to check on the trees.
Five healthy trees did have to be removed, along with three dangerous trees, but they will all be replaced. As well, native plants and grasses will be planted in the fall to restore the site.
“We feel a lot of attention went into that,” Pavey said.
A detour will soon be removed so walkers, runners and cyclists will be able to use the entire trail system.
