Lincoln Street docks project left adrift at council meeting
A report recommending Welland proceed with a canoe/kayak rental facility at the Lincoln Street docks, to be made out of shipping containers, didn’t make it on the floor during Tuesday’s city council meeting.
It was pulled from a packed agenda for specific council discussion, but when it came time to talk about the plans no councillor seconded a motion to get it into play.
As a result, no decision was made on the facility, which would replace the one north of Thorold Road on the west side of the Welland Recreational Canal and be constructed from as many as 19 shipping containers of different shapes and sizes.
The report from city engineer Erik Nickel said the cost of building a facility from scratch would be between $500,000 and $700,000 for design and build.
He told council at a recent committee-of-the-whole meeting, the architect for the project gave the city a price range of $200,000 to $400,000 for a 360-square-metre facility built of shipping containers.
The building is to house 12 double kayaks 40 standup paddleboards, 30 single kayaks, six pedal boats, 12 canoes, 150 life-jackets and 90 paddles.
Lincoln Street docks are south of Lincoln Street and are used by divers, Welland Floatfest, standup paddleboarders, swimmers and more. There’s a large concrete pad with docks going into the canal and the area has already gone changes as part of a multi-phase project.
In addition to the new facility, the area will see improved parking, an area for food trucks, temporary washrooms and a possible pickleball court.
It’s expected the report will come back at the next council meeting.