The City of Prince George now has a framework for the renewal of Carrie Jane Gray Park.
At last night’s (Monday) meeting, Prince George City Council received a report and concept plan for upgrades to the Park.
“Carrie Jane Gray Park and corridor buzzes with activity from our six ball diamonds, BMX track, lacrosse box, skatepark, beach volleyball facility and some upgrades that we’ve done through our new Jumpstart Multi-sport courts,” said Parks Services Supervisor Robyn McConkey.
“The City of Prince George is a passionate sports community, and this project will continue to recognize the commitment to sport, and provide direction for strategic investments moving forward.”
Included in the concept plan is a new, multi-sport field, which could be used for football, soccer, baseball, and many other outdoor field sports, new BMX tracks and an amenity building that includes changerooms, washrooms and a multi-purpose bookable space.
McConkey noted the city is looking at a “very phased approach” for the concept.
“This all would be put through budget submissions and then how we can move forward depending what we decide to do,” she explained.
“So if we decide next year we want to start with servicing of the site, so maybe a civil design, if we want to talk about building a new BMX track, putting in some roads and parking, it could be up to $1.5 million or $2 million. Synthetic turf fields in today’s dollars can run municipalities $12 million. We’ve just kind of looked at today’s dollars and just taking smaller chunks if we move forward.”
“This is the type of thing we should be putting our dollars towards,” said Councillor Kyle Sampson.
“We fund things that have nothing to do with our level of government, we’re funding things that are provincial and federal levels, healthcare, we’re putting money into, mental health resources, we’re putting money into, and we’re spending tens of millions of dollars, we’re spending one synthetic field a year on other level of government’s problems, and we should be putting our taxpayers’ dollars into resources that are going to give them the amenities and bring other economic benefits to our community.”
Council approved the concept plan to be used a a guide for proposed phased infrastructure investment for the area for Council’s consideration through annual capital budget funding submissions, commencing in 2025.
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