Vancouver's Trout Lake Community Centre renovation approved
Last Updated: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 | 9:51 AM PT
CBC News
In last-minute amendment to the city's capital plan, Vancouver City Council has set aside $23 million to renovate the Trout Lake Community Centre.
Funding to renew the well-used but run-down recreation facility on Victoria Drive was cut from the new capital spending plan earlier this year as city staff wrestled with the nearly half-billion-dollar budget.
That outraged patrons of the East Vancouver facility and the commssioner of the Vancouver Park Board who lobbied hard to have the renovation reinstated in the plan.
Park Board vice-chair Ian Robertson was thrilled with the last-minute amendment.
"We need to ensure that we have at least one community centre in each of our capital plans to keep up with the pace of renewal," Robertson told CBC News on Tuesday night.
But the news was bittersweet for staff at the nearby Britannia Community Centre, another eastside facility in dire need of upgrades.
It was excluded from the capital plan, despite a strong lobbying effort before council earlier this week. Executive director Enzo Guerriero was frustrated Britannia won't be getting a facelift.
"In three years in a city like Vancouver, a lot of changes are taking place and in the meantime we're not able to meet some of the changing needs of the community," said Guerriero.
Vancouver's new capital plan will cost $495 million dollars, a 30 per cent increase over the previous three-year plan. Much of the money will go to maintenance of sewer and water systems and other city infrastructure, such as streets and bridges.
The funding plan, if approved by voters during November's civic election, will guide spending over the next three years.
