District applying to repair aging Evans Road bridge

A nearly century-old bridge in Lake Country, long closed to vehicles, could be rehabilitated thanks to COVID-19.

Town council is expected Tuesday to submit a request for a $250,000 provincial government grant to fix the old Evans Road bridge

It was built about 90 years ago by CN Railway, municipal officials say, to provide vehicle access to properties along Kalamalka Lake that were cut-off by construction of the tracks.

But the wooden bridge was closed more than a decade ago because it had become unsafe, after protracted squabbles over who should pay for its upkeep, and a different access to the properties was developed.

The Community Economic Recovery Infrastructure Program was developed by the provincial government to fund projects that support economic resilience, tourism, and heritage preservation objectives in communities impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

A total of $90 million is being provided through the program across B.C.

Applications for funding must be submitted to the government by Oct. 29 with proponents of successful projects being notified early next year.

In a 2018 report, Lake Country officials estimated it would cost about $200,000 to fix up the bridge. It was described as a “historic landmark” that was in danger of soon crumbling beyond the point where repairs would be viable.

“If left unmaintained, it will fall beyond repair and present a hazard to the community (and) it will have to be removed at considerable cost,” town officials wrote in the 2018 report.

Should the bridge be rehabilitated, it will only be made safe for pedestrians and cyclists, not improved to the point where it could once again carry traffic.