Residents and tourists will have to wait a little while longer before they can enjoy climbing their way to the top of the Kinosoo Adventure Park.
The $1.6-million project has been delayed, while the MD of Bonnyville awaits approval from the federal government on their Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) grant request.
Currently, their $800,000 ask is being held at the expression of interest phase, and there’s no current end in sight.
Originally, general manager of planning and development Caroline Palmer said during council’s Sept. 11 meeting, they were expecting to get the news sometime this fall, but it’s looking like the MD won’t know whether or not they’ve been approved until the spring.
As a result, “timelines have been extended,” stated Palmer.
“This could potentially delay the construction and opening of the adventure park to 2021.”
Although the MD could go ahead with the project on their own, council felt the almost $1-million in ICIP money was worth waiting for.
CAO Luc Mercier said, “In the end, all we’re saying to council is that this $800,000 that we’ve committed as revenue for this project is going to hold us up. There was some discussion of potentially paying for it all ourselves, but the issue is… any work we do beforehand risks us getting the grant at all because they won’t allow us to start before.”
The park was included in the 2019 budget with hopes of getting started on construction this year.
The structure, which will be built in Germany before being shipped to Alberta and installed on the ski hill, includes climbing and obstacle course-type features made up of poles, cables, and platforms.
Users are strapped in for safety as they make their way higher up the multi-level structure.
The adventure park is the MD’s first step in turning Kinosoo Ridge into an all-seasons location, with additional plans in the works.
Mercier stressed that while council waits to hear whether or not their ICIP application has been given the green light, they can’t even get started on the project due to the risk of the province shutting down their grant request altogether.
“We can’t risk it. Anything that we do, in my mind, puts us at significant risk of not getting this grant.”
He added, “I don’t think we should even put a shovel in the ground.”
Their hope is to hear by springtime.
“If we don’t, we can make whatever decision we want from there, and there is still a good chance we could finish this next year,” Mercier exclaimed.
