It promises to be a place for people to meet, play and discover. And, earlier this week, council approved a preliminary design of the Kamloops Spirit Square. Located at the corner of Mackenzie Avenue and Yew Street on the North Shore, the square will have a spirit forest, heritage park and water feature, with a small play area for children. It will also be an anchor park for the area, hosting events like the farmers’ market and community celebrations. It’s all to commemorate B.C.’s 150th birthday this year. The provincial government set aside $20 million across the province for spirit-square construction. It’s expected Kamloops’ square will cost roughly $750,000, with the city and province splitting the bill. With the city’s early approval, the design goes to the province for approval. The public will get a chance to see the final design before it goes to tender. City council raised some concerns with the design, including parking, but Jeff Putnam, business and client service manager with the city, said council’s suggestions will be given consideration and pointed out it’s not the final design. “We’ll have the design committee sit down one more time and figure out exactly how we want it to look and then go to tender on the architects and drawings,” he said. The site is a city-owned parking lot. Peter Mutrie, manager of the North Shore Business Improvement Association, has seen the design and likes what he saw. “It will be important to Kamloops to have another civic asset of this stature, and for it to be on the North Shore is a real a benefit,” he said. Mutrie is pleased consideration was made for the farmers’ market and the design uses principles for crime prevention through environmental design. Once completed, Mutrie expects the square to be used heavily by the community. Putnam said construction should begin in the spring, with completion by the end of the year.
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Don Quixote Note: This was grant money that I suggested that the City of Vernon try to access as part of a gathering place in Polson Park last year.
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