Fourth Avenue Walkway work discussion to be deferred until 2024 budget process

The reopening of the Fourth Avenue Walkway will now be an item 
for discussion as part of the 2024 Budget process 

Residents of the Fourth Avenue West area and those who use the walkway between the street and downtown Prince Rupert will have to wait a few more months to hear word of any remediation work on the still closed walkway and staircase connector.

Monday night's City Council session featured a verbal presentation from Operations Director Richard Pucci, who relayed some of the findings from recent studies into the geo technical and structural elements of the walkway system. 

The verbal review serving as an addendum  to a  report on the walkway that was included in the Agenda on the night, which we reviewed here on Monday morning. 

As part of his update, Mr. Pucci noted of the recent work of both Empire Tree Removal and City work crews on brush removal in the area behind Third Avenue West.

The Director observed on the need for replacement of some of the creosote sections, while noting that the concrete areas remain good, as well there is a need to place cocoa matting to generate vegetation growth to hold the slope in place.

"Both structural and geotechnical engineers have now completed their final inspections after all of the debris was removed and they recommend that the entire section of elevated wood, which is the creosote section has to be removed and replaced.  

The rest of the area which is the concrete sections are all in good enough shape to continue and to stay"

Mr. Pucci estimated cost for that work just to keep the area safe is approximaetly 60,000 dollars, while rebuilding the walkway to code will cost up to 150,000 to 200,000 dollars work which would include additional lighting. He observed that city staff have already used 30,000 of the 50,000 allotted for the study. 

From the review, the Mayor observed as to what the news means for the walkway at the moment. 

"I guess in a nutshell, what you are saying is that unless there's some sort of budgetary miracle here, or unless Council cancels some other project. 

The funds don't exist in this budget year  anyway to repair the walkway"

Director Pucci confirmed that observation, noting how staff would be bringing it forward for the 2024 budget process for consideration.

That Budget process gets underway on November 6th with a presentation by the Citys Chief Financial Office Corinne Bomben, a public forum at Coast Mountain College on the budget planing will follow on November  9th.

No other Council members had comments or questions related to the verbal report from Monday.

The presentation to Council can be viewed through the City's Video archive, starting at the 26 minute mark.

We reviewed some of the history on Council's review of the walkway issue through the year with this piece from October 13th during the brush clearing project noted by the Director.

More notes on Monday's Council Session can be reviewed here.