Riverside Park Improvements

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Riverside Park is one of the City's most well loved and busiest green spaces. Over the next few years, residents and visitors will notice improvements in different areas of the park to make it safer and more accessible.

The improvements at Riverside Park can be divided into two components: Outdoor Recreation improvements - which include replacing the aging water park, and Flood and Erosion Protection.

Outdoor Recreation

The City needs to replace the aging water park, which it has budgeted for as part of the its Asset Management Program. The City had been been pursuing a community and recreation focused grant that would transform the aging spray park into a new water park and winter-time ice surface to provide recreational enjoyment year-round, however the City was unsuccessful in securing any grants. At the September 28, 2021 Council meeting, Council directed Administration to replace the spray park and washroom/changeroom building but indefinitely deferred the skating rink project. Replacing the washroom/changeroom building with a new asset will allow for a fully accessible, gender-neutral, year-round facility. Staff have also included approximately $100,000 in the cost estimate to install brine lines in the spray park’s concrete pad so the City does not lose the opportunity to add a skating rink at this location in the future.

Flood and Erosion Protection

The City recently received funding from the Provincial Government in the amount of $750,000 to aid in flood mitigation efforts along the riverbank at Riverside Park as part of the $1.5 million Structural Flood Mitigation Project.

This project is intended to protect Riverside Park from flooding, and specifically critical sanitary sewer infrastructure within the park. In addition to raising the grade of the Rivers Trail, the City intends to complete bank stabilization near the pier to prevent erosion and damage to infrastructure during high water periods, building on temporary emergency work that was undertaken in 2018. The City will reconstruct the Rivers Trail to a higher elevation to provide a barrier to rising waters, and reduce the frequency of deploying temporary measures.

The project is expected to begin in late November. Stay tuned to this page for updates, or sign up to receive email updates to your inbox.

Riverside Park is one of the City's most well loved and busiest green spaces. Over the next few years, residents and visitors will notice improvements in different areas of the park to make it safer and more accessible.

The improvements at Riverside Park can be divided into two components: Outdoor Recreation improvements - which include replacing the aging water park, and Flood and Erosion Protection.

Outdoor Recreation

The City needs to replace the aging water park, which it has budgeted for as part of the its Asset Management Program. The City had been been pursuing a community and recreation focused grant that would transform the aging spray park into a new water park and winter-time ice surface to provide recreational enjoyment year-round, however the City was unsuccessful in securing any grants. At the September 28, 2021 Council meeting, Council directed Administration to replace the spray park and washroom/changeroom building but indefinitely deferred the skating rink project. Replacing the washroom/changeroom building with a new asset will allow for a fully accessible, gender-neutral, year-round facility. Staff have also included approximately $100,000 in the cost estimate to install brine lines in the spray park’s concrete pad so the City does not lose the opportunity to add a skating rink at this location in the future.

Flood and Erosion Protection

The City recently received funding from the Provincial Government in the amount of $750,000 to aid in flood mitigation efforts along the riverbank at Riverside Park as part of the $1.5 million Structural Flood Mitigation Project.

This project is intended to protect Riverside Park from flooding, and specifically critical sanitary sewer infrastructure within the park. In addition to raising the grade of the Rivers Trail, the City intends to complete bank stabilization near the pier to prevent erosion and damage to infrastructure during high water periods, building on temporary emergency work that was undertaken in 2018. The City will reconstruct the Rivers Trail to a higher elevation to provide a barrier to rising waters, and reduce the frequency of deploying temporary measures.

The project is expected to begin in late November. Stay tuned to this page for updates, or sign up to receive email updates to your inbox.

  • Upgrades Starting at Riverside Park

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    November 17, 2021—Construction is starting next week on improvements throughout Riverside Park that will make the City's most loved and busiest park space safer and more accessible.

    The improvements coming to Riverside Park over the next year include the following:

    • replacing the aging spray park with a new, accessible spray park
    • demolishing the old concession and washroom buildings
    • constructing/installing a new change room/washroom building with gender-neutral and accessible components
    • completing flood mitigation work, including the raising of Rivers Trail between Uji Gardens and Sandman Centre
    • paving and widening the Rivers Trail multi-use pathway between Uji Gardens and Sandman Centre
    • installing new lighting, benches, and garbage receptacles along the Rivers Trail
    • strategically planning the new spray park’s concrete pad to accommodate the possibility of a future skating rink

    The project will begin on November 22, 2021, and is expected to be complete in summer 2022. Demolition will start next week on the concrete and asphalt surfaces, including the Rivers Trail and the spray park pad. Crews will begin work at the east end of the park, between the pier and Sandman Center, and then move west towards Uji Gardens. The beach, pier, Rivers Trail, spray park, and adjacent washroom building will be closed for the duration of the project.

    The playground, tennis courts, pickleball courts, bandshell, and other green spaces will remain open and accessible to the public. Park visitors are asked to avoid the construction zone and utilize Lorne Street as a detour route. Washrooms can be accessed at the west end of the park and at Heritage House.

    City staff are working with various Riverside Park user groups to mitigate the impact of construction on any scheduled programs or events.

    “I think the public will be extremely happy with the upgrades coming to Riverside Park. We’re striving to accomplish as much work as possible in the off season so that the park can be open to visitors next summer,” said Darren Crundwell, the City’s Capital Projects Supervisor. “Combining the flood mitigation work with the spray park upgrades allows us to minimize impact to the park.”

    Subscribe at LetsTalk.Kamloops.ca/Riverside for up-to-date project information.

Page last updated: 17 November 2021, 13:44