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Phase 2 underway downtown Trail

The second step towards a prettier downtown began this week as workers turned over flower beds to make room for sustainable flowers.
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Trail’s Aron Tinsley was the lone man responsible for pulling 3


The second step toward a prettier downtown Trail began this week as workers turned over flower beds to make room for sustainable perennials and removed bricks one-by-one from Rossland Avenue medians to make way for a new concrete look.

Sierra Landscaping, the project’s prime contractor out of the Okanagan, had equipment and labourers at the Gulch sites prepping the area for new irrigation lines and new growing soil to add to the city’s existing beds.

Inlaid brick work was removed from the medians and placed on palettes to accommodate repairs to damaged curbs at the Rossland Avenue intersection.

The old bricks will be stored in the city’s public works yard and will be reused for other landscaping purposes or used in city parks, explained Andrea Jolly, Trail’s communications and events coordinator.

“A concrete skirt will replace the old bricks around the planting area,” she added.

The major component during this phase is the installation of new curbing and foundations at the Gulch intersection, which are meant to improve the walkability and pedestrian safety in this area.

The work from Rossland Avenue’s intersection to the Victoria Street Bridge will take place from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Friday, with a completion date set for Aug. 15.

Motorists and pedestrians are asked to take caution when walking or driving through this area and are asked to obey all posted information signage, temporary lane and sidewalk closures, posted speed limits, idle reduction notices and traffic control personnel in the area of construction.

As the project rolls east into the downtown section, memorial benches, waste bins and bike racks will be installed at the new bump-out locations and planting areas.

There are no plans for further work during this phase, but there could be additional structures added like information kiosks or gateway features in the future, and at the discretion of Trail council.

Sierra Landscaping was awarded a $590,000 contract to tender the second leg of work that includes sustainable grasses, perennials and flowering ornamental trees in the Gerick Cycle & Sports plaza on Rossland Avenue, at the intersection near the bottom of Glover Road, along Victoria Street between Cedar and Bay Ave., and at the front entrance of the Trail Memorial Centre.

The process of choosing city landscape was multifaceted, with consideration given to sustainability, water conservation and the difficult seasonal growing conditions along the major artery through Trail.

Snow clearing, snow dumping and use of salt on pavement during the winter months, are all barriers associated with planting in urban conditions

Graceful shapes of ornamental grasses, flowering seedlings and Canada’s mightiest symbol, the maple tree, will be planted along Victoria Street in the next few months.

Last summer, Trail embarked on a $1.2 million facelift that involved digging up the city’s old bones to modernize drainage, curbing and sidewalk framework at the bottom of Glover Road and through town along the Victoria Street corridor.

A trio of red pillars were installed along the street’s major intersections as navigational guides for tourists passing through town.

Recently two of the columns had salt and pepper granite added to the bases to highlight Trail’s rock walls and match stonework completed by volunteers at the Cenotaph and Piazza Colombo.



Sheri Regnier

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