Ground broken on Splash
and Spray Park at Kinsmen
Posted in News on May 23rd, 2014 by Dan Walton
The skatepark they built in 2009 instantly became a popular attraction, and now the Rotary Club of Invermere is getting ready to scratch another fun project off its wish list, having recently broken ground on its long-anticipated Splash and Spray Park at the Kinsmen Beach on Tuesday, May 13th. The Rotary Club hopes to have the splash park operational by the July 1st long weekend, but the service club still has to complete the last leg of its fundraising drive.
The park’s price tag is in the ballpark of $320,000, and there’s about $50,000 still needed to complete the project, said Kerri-Anne Thomas, chair of the Splash Park Committee.
If the club can’t raise the remaining amount in time, the District of Invermere has agreed to provide bridge funding to the Rotary Club — essentially, agreeing to cover the difference between what the club has raised and the total construction cost, but this amount would need to be repaid.
The park will span 250 square metres east of the Kinsmen Beach parking lot, and will give users multiple new ways to soak themselves and their friends.
“The concept that was decided upon was worked on with the manufacturer of the product, and included input from the Rotary and the kind of fixtures they wanted,” Ms. Thomas said.
To reach the point of breaking ground, roughly 85 per cent of the goal has been achieved through many major revenue drivers. The Rotary Club’s fundraising was off to a strong start with the Seafood Splash and Laughs in June 2013, and then received a boost of $25,000 after winning its contest against Pemberton in the 2013 Kraft Celebration Tour.
Substantial support also came from the Panorama Foundation and the District of Invermere, which propped up the project with $50,000 each.
The Kinsmen Club has also been instrumental in supporting its Rotary Club counterparts, as has Columbia Basin Trust Community Initiatives.
From the Columbia Valley Pioneer