Already an integral part of the park's landscape, it was no surprise the official opening the footbridge in Cottonwood Island Park was momentarily interrupted by a jogger ducking under the ceremonial ribbon Saturday afternoon.
City officials and community partners gathered to celebrate the completion of restoration work to the park, a year-long project which included debris removal, vegetation cutting and pruning along the trails and trail reconstruction.
The centrepiece of the project was the replica of the old Cameron Street bridge, erected to replace the five bridges damaged during the 2007-2008 winter ice flows.
This is to celebrate not only the work that is now complete but more importantly the partnerships that have been established to make this possible.
Rogers acknowledged the previous members of council who were a part of the construction of the new Cameron Street Bridge, which opened in 2009.
"There was a great deal of discussion about losing the heritage so that's why I want to thank the members of the heritage commission who are here and those that were part of the commission many years ago. As a member of council at the time, I know that we had a great deal of discussion around how we can preserve that," he said.
But while the initial thought was to lift a piece of the old bride out and put it in a new location, the city had to face the practical realities of that plan.
"But we did not want to lose focus on the opportunity to celebrate the heritage and that's where the replica of this bridge comes in," Rogers said.
The Heritage Commission of Prince George suggested the replica design for the footbridge to commemorate the structure that served the city for 74 years, said commission vice-chair Ranjit Gil.
The mission of the community heritage commission is to protect, preserve and interpret heritage resources within the city," Gil said. "We are committed to showcasing and bringing to life the unique history and heritage of Prince George."
An original truss from the last remaining section of the bridge now has a home next door to the replica bridge at the Central British Columbia Railway and Forestry Museum.
The full scope of the project included repairing and redoing trails, removing trees and repairing lookouts, said city manager for parks and solid waste services manager Flavio Viola. The city also put in a service bridge and repaired a bridge still on Cottonwood Island. A third bridge crossing is expected to be constructed next year.
In order to fund the nearly half-million dollar restoration project, the city submitted a claim to the Provincial Emergency Program in 2008. They received approximately $350,000 in disaster financial assistance from the province and the rest was brought in by the city and a partnership with Telus.
Through a promotion where $100 was donated to the cause for every new Optick TV subscriber in Prince George, the telecommunications company contributed $144,500, said Chris Jensen, Telus general manager for Northern B.C.
Jensen said the same promotion is running this year in support of the Kordyban Lodge.
