Highway landscaping approved

Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star Published: July 28, 2009 7:00 PM

A blight on the landscape is ready for transformation.Vernon council has given the green light to landscaping of Highway 97 between the weigh scale and Stickle Road. It’s anticipated that the project will take place between Sept. 10 and Oct. 8.“There is a need for us to beautify the north end,” said Coun. Buffy Baumbrough of the dead trees and grass lining the highway.“We have received so many calls and e-mails that we need to do something. It’s the gateway to our north end and people are being welcomed with a mess.” Ministry of Transportation approval is required because the right-of-way is provincial property, but city officials are confident that will occur.

To fund the initiative, the city will take $120,000 out of the road reserve and $110,500 from the casino reserve. Swan Lake Nurseryland is donating $130,000 and $500 a year will come from the BX-Swan Lake electoral area because that section of highway is located in the regional district and not the city. “It’s the community coming together and it’s refreshing to see Mike Gavinchuk (BX-Swan Lake director) come on board,” said Mayor Wayne Lippert.As part of the project, the city will also try to develop an agreement with Gavinchuk to cover the costs of irrigation water.The provincial government used to maintain landscaping along the highway but that came to an end in 2003 because of budget cuts. Since then, local jurisdictions have debated whether they should take over landscaping. “It’s a type of downloading,” said Lippert of the city funding something that’s a provincial responsibility.

“But it comes down to community pride and community pride dictates we look after it.”

----------------

Picking up the slack Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star

There was some question Monday as to whether the Ministry of Transportation will approve the City of Vernon landscaping Highway 97 from Stickle Road to the weigh scales. But I think the answer is known already.Of course it’s going to say yes to the city, the regional district and Swan Lake Nurseryland spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on land it abandoned years ago. And how the highway corridor became a wasteland of dead grass and weeds is a crucial part of the issue that’s been forgotten. It was back in 2003 that the Ministry of Transportation walked away from funding roadside maintenance because of budget cuts. That meant that any infrastructure invested on the right-of-way — whether it was trees, shrubs or irrigation lines — was left to rot. Ultimately, Victoria was deciding that it was no longer responsible for land that it owns.

No sooner did that occur and concerns were being raised locally about the state of the landscaping and the negative impact on Vernon’s image. It became a regular bone of contention for then-councillor Barry Beardsell. “It still looks like a dump out there. It’s absolutely atrocious,” he told council in 2004.Because the corridor is actually outside of Vernon’s boundaries, attempts were made to get then-electoral area directors Cliff Kanester and Stan Field to help fund improvements. But the BX boys refused, saying that it wasn’t up to their taxpayers to pay for a provincial responsibility.

Fast-forward to today, and Vernon Mayor Wayne Lippert shares those past concerns. “It’s a type of downloading,” he said of the city forking out $230,000 for landscaping, while $130,000 will come from Swan Lake Nurseryland and $500 a year from BX-Swan Lake residents. “But it comes down to community pride and community pride dictates we look after it.”

And obviously I understand why they are picking up the ball. The corridor is a horrible mess and tourists must wonder if the town is worth exploring after seeing the dead zone.It should also be pointed out that this isn’t the first time area jurisdictions have taken over funding key initiatives when the province turned the taps off. Countless dollars are collected every year in local property taxes in the North Okanagan so the Ministry of Health doesn’t have to pick up the full tab of hospital expansions or for purchasing medical equipment. The City of Vernon has also ventured into social services in the last few years, directing cash towards the Women’s Centre and property for affordable housing. There once was a time when the provincial government contributed towards milfoil weed control in the lakes, but Okanagan municipalities and regional districts took over 100 per cent of the program many years ago. The City of Vernon must also maintain 27th Street as a local service road although it is a significant link between two provincial highways.

Government downloading has become so common that it should be designated as an Olympic sport in 2010. Ultimately, there was little choice for the City of Vernon and Gavinchuk to accept responsibility for the Highway 97 corridor, and Swan Lake Nurseryland deserves considerable praise for taking an active role in the community.But as part of the upgrades, a small portion of the barren landscape should be left for everyone to see. And within it, there should be a giant sign saying, “This mess is brought to you by the B.C. government. To lodge a protest, call Premier Gordon Campbell or Vernon-Monashee MLA Eric Foster.”