Replacement of the Salmon River Bridge and an upgraded sanitary sewer main along the foreshore top the city’s federal infrastructure funding wish list.
Responding to federal finance minister Bill Morneau’s request for input regarding the city’s infrastructure needs, Salmon Arm Coun. Alan Harrison took the lead, seeking input from staff and fellow councillors before drafting a list of priority projects, along with an explanation as to why it is important they be funded.
Replacing the Salmon River Bridge is one of those priority projects. A draft letter from the city to the minister explains the current, two-lane curved bridge is old and dangerous, that the B.C. government is working with the city and local First Nations to finalize the project, but federal funding is needed to make the project happen.
“Not only will completion of this project help meet the government’s goal of four-laning the Trans-Canada Highway, the flood mitigation strategies embedded in the plan will help solve a long-standing problem of imminent flooding of the Salmon River,” states the letter.
Upgrading the sanitary sewer main along the foreshore of Shuswap Lake is the second priority project.
“We had a breach in that line in 2012… it’s an old line and that is very expensive to replace and we do now want to have an environmental problem there with another breach in that pipe,” Harrison explained.
Council was supportive of the letter.