Colwood’s Waterfront Stewardship Plan is inching closer to completion after nearly two years of work.
On Monday (July 10), council unanimously approved a collection of minor amendments to the draft plan and directed staff to start another round of public and stakeholder consultation ahead of the draft’s planned return to council in the fall for final refinement and adoption.
The amendments to what is now the second iteration of the draft plan come from a detailed engineering report the previous council commissioned in order to provide additional information on how the plan should accommodate the impacts of sea level rise.
Associated Engineering Ltd. produced the report, focusing mostly on wave overtopping analysis on the conceptual plans for the Esquimalt Lagoon area. It recommended several changes to the plans, including moving the Perimeter Park Waterfront Plaza design element closer to the sea in order to reduce its elevation, conduct additional studies on the potential impact of erosion on the plan’s proposed boardwalk element, provide additional space for dune restoration in several areas to allow a more stable upper beach, and decrease the size of the planned parking area.
Once complete, the plan will outline the city’s goals for ecosystem restoration and improved accessibility along the waterfront, with its hallmark feature being a new multipurpose path which will both increase accessibility while also shifting visitors away from sensitive areas.
The engineering report presented to council also provided updated cost estimates for the work outlined in the draft plan.
The project’s cost is now estimated at just below $12 million, including 10 per cent engineering and 40 per cent contingency costs due to the volatile construction pricing currently being seen. Just under $1.5 million of that figure is due to the recommended amendments.
Earlier this year, the city received $6 million from the Canada Community-Building Fund to help cover the costs of the multipurpose pathway.
Once the plan is finalized and approved, the next steps in the wider project will be detailed design work on the features which will accomplish the plan’s goals, and a phased construction approach.
READ MORE: Colwood gets $6M for Esquimalt Lagoon improvements