The soap opera in Quesnel known as the steam shovel may have come to an end at last (Tuesday) night’s City Council meeting.
The old Council decided to take it out of Lhtako Dene Park and send it back to Likely, the new Council decided to keep it in Quesnel instead, that decision was reviewed and upheld and it was put into storage, and now there is a preferred site to relocate it.
City Manager Byron Johnson suggested four possibilities and the preferred option was to move it to Heritage Corner on Highway 97 just south of the Water Wheel.
Mayor Ron Paull liked that choice.
“It would be a very worthwhile addition to the Heritage Corner. We’ve got not only the Fraser walking bridge which is undergoing A major upgrade at the present time, it’s right on the walking trail, and we also have the Cornish Water Wheel, the remains of the SS Enterprise Paddle Wheeler, the boiler out of that paddle wheeler, and also a couple of other artifacts that fit in well.”
The vote was 4-2 in favour as Councillor Tony Goulet was not at the meeting.
Councillor Scott Elliott was one of those opposed.
“I don’t think I recall anyone ever apologizing to Likely and I would like to do that officially right now. I feel that the way we handled this was atrocious. I am really disappointed with the bullying that took place towards their chamber of commerce, so on principle I will not be voting in favour of this.”
Councillor Laurey-Anne Roodenburg was also not happy with the process.
“I just want to state that I do recognize that the majority of Council voted to not move the steam shovel to Likely, and my vote was to move it as we had agreed to. There are so many reasons that I don’t need to rehash, so this is a bit of a tough pill to swallow given the costs now to bring it back into the downtown core, so I am going to have to vote against the relocation of the steam shovel to this particular area.”
According to the budget, it could potentially cost taxpayers up to 40 thousand dollars.
Other locations considered for the steam shovel included the Sani-loop just east of the Moffat Bridge, the Antique Machinery Park off Highway 97 south of Quesnel, and at the downtown Railway Station.
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