By Steve Hubrecht
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The new pavilion in the Canal Flats Lions Park officially opened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony earlier this month.
Village and regional officials gathered on Thursday, Sept. 9, to celebrate the completion of a project that began two years ago. The majority of the funding for the pavilion and new washrooms came from the Columbia Basin Trust (CBT)’s community outdoor revitalization capital grant funding stream.
“The pavilion has been well used by families and groups in the community for gatherings like family reunions all summer,” said Canal Flats chief administrative officer Adrian Bergles. “It’s about creating gathering space for the community. It’s a really nice piece in the downtown and is great for the community.”
Bergles added that aside from Canal Flats residents, the Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy (CBAL) and Family Dynamix have also regularly used the pavilion for their events in the village.
The village secured the grant two years ago, but progress was delayed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Bergles told the Pioneer, adding most of the structure went up in summer 2020, with the final touches, such as lighting and plumbing, wrapping up this past spring and summer.
The project was worked on in partnership between the village and the Canal Flats Community Society. Aside from the CBT, Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK) Area F (through a grant in aid), and Columbia Roofing (which donated roofing for the washroom), and Canfor Radium (which donated lumber for the pavilion roof) also contributed.
Golden-based Canadian Timberframes did the framing work on the pavilion, which Bergles noted “really is cutting edge timber framing.”
