The popular Rod Reid Trail, located at the top of Ninth Avenue in 亚洲天堂 Lake, is looking great after receiving multiple upgrades this summer.
The upgrades were thanks to the 亚洲天堂 Lake Rotary Club and the contributions of several local companies, volunteers and local governments.
鈥淚t all came together really well because of the community involvement,鈥� said Laura Blackwell, Rotary鈥檚 past president. 鈥淲e would have never been able to do such a big project without the people who helped us.鈥�
As part of the upgrades, all bridges were replaced, both viewpoints were repaired and painted, gravel was added in lower spots of the trail, benches were upgraded, and signs throughout the trail were replaced and painted.
鈥淭here won鈥檛 be any more soggy trails next spring where the trail used to flood due to high water,鈥� said Blackwell.
The biggest part of the upgrades was replacing all of the trail鈥檚 bridges.
鈥淭hey used to be very steep and had no handrails; now they are flat and every bridge has handrails,鈥� explained Blackwell.
鈥淲e just upgraded everything, either by replacing it or fixing it,鈥� she added. 鈥淭he trail has turned out beautiful.鈥�
This was Rotary鈥檚 main project for 2017.
鈥淲e were aware that the trail needed a lot of upgrading, so we thought this would be a perfect project for us because it is something the whole community uses,鈥� said Blackwell. 鈥淲e have received lots of feedback already from the community and everyone has said they appreciate the work we have done.鈥�
It took the chosen contractor, Hurry Help Landscaping, 16 days to complete their part of the work. Rotary members then completed the painting in about four days.
When asked why Rotary chose a contractor based in Fraser Lake, Blackwell said that the club tried to hire a local contractor, but that they were not successful.
鈥淲e asked seven locals contractors in town but they were either too busy or couldn鈥檛 do the job, so we went with Hurry Help Landscaping,鈥� she said.
The Fraser Lake company donated $8000 of work and supplies to the project.
鈥淚t was so fantastic of them to put such a huge contribution into our community,鈥� said Blackwell.
Although the club is not sure of the precise cost of the project, Rotary has spent approximately $26,000 in addition to the $8000 donated by Hurry Help Landscaping.
Several companies and local government also contributed to the project, including Dale Ross from the Village of 亚洲天堂 Lake, Chinook Community Forest, 亚洲天堂 Lake Community Forest, Lakes District Maintenance, Babine Forest Products, Decker Lake Forest Products and Home Hardware.
鈥淥ne of our longtime members, George Magee, was very helpful to the club as he let us use his land to access the trail easier,鈥� said Blackwell. 鈥淪o that was a bonus. Not only George, but Luke Strimbold and Richard Vossen were instrumental in this project along with long time Rotarian Jack Brown and other Rotarians like Lianne Olson, it was a club effort by all of us.鈥�
鈥淭his project was a combined effort with over 200 hours of labour that club members and community volunteers put into it,鈥� she added.
The 亚洲天堂 Lake Rotary Club holds fundraising events throughout the year to fund community projects. The annual radio auction is the club鈥檚 biggest fundraiser, usually raising about $30,000.
In 2016, Rotary spent approximately $20,000 on the 亚洲天堂 Lake Cemetery revitalization project and approximately $8000 on the 亚洲天堂 Lake Community Garden.
