West Kelowna power poles getting new home
Power poles curiously located in the middle of newly-built sidewalks in West Kelowna will be relocated.
City council will hear tomorrow how staff plans to move some of the poles along Boucherie Road, also known as the Wine Route. Boucherie is being reconstructed between Stuart Road and Ogden Road with the work including such things as two roundabouts, bike lanes, wider sidewalks and decorative features. The project is on track for a projected completion date of November.
Before the job started, estimates were relocating the power poles underground might cost as much as $4 million, so the project was not undertaken.
But eyebrows were raised recently when sections of the new sidewalk were built around power poles, potentially raising safety issues. Now, the intention is to move the poles on the east side of Boucherie to between the pedestrian sidewalk and the cycle track.
“This would provide a more aesthetically pleasing conclusion to the pole conflicts and all costs associated with the pole relocation and concrete replacement would be covered by BC Hydro,” reads part of a staff report to council. The power poles won't be moved until next spring of summer.
On the west side of Boucherie, five telephone poles owned by Telus will also be moved from the middle of the sidewalk to its edge. Telus will pay for the work.
While the poles’ relocation will not cost taxpayers anything, other unforeseen developments in the Wine Route reconstruction project have pushed the total cost from $8.7 million to $9.3 million. Most of the extra money will come from a Bike BC program, the Transit Gas Tax Fund and ICBC.