Residents and visitors invited to Lakeside Park celebration August 31, 2012

Residents and visitors are invited to celebrate the completion of Lakeside Park, August 31, 2012 from 4 to 6 p.m. Lakeside Park is located in Alta Vista, along the shores of Alta Lake.

The family-friendly celebration will include a kids’ sand castle building contest judged by the mayor, celebratory cake, ribbon cutting and remarks by the mayor, face painting and kids’ crafts. The sand castle contest kicks off at 4 p.m.

The Lakeside Park upgrades include:

• New building for washrooms, concession, commercial boat tour and rental operation.
• Renovated beachfront with two docks and swim rafts, a larger swimming area, protected shoreline habitat for fish, larger beach lawn and sand area, and beach shower.
• Provisions for commercial boat operations such as a new boat beach launch and boat deck, storage racks and training area relocated away from park users. The Valley Trail was also re-graded for shuttling boat carts.
• Renovated parking area off Alpine Crescent with 41 parking spaces including three accessible parking spots, public drop-off and loading area spaces. Additional on-street parking at Hillcrest Drive.
• Additional picnic tables and benches. The Valley Trail was also re-aligned through the park into the new Lakecrest development thus removing a major hill, making it more accessible.
• Improved directional signage in Alta Lake and Lakecrest subdivisions.
• General landscape and drainage improvements including vegetative buffering for neighbour privacy.

Lakeside Park is one of Whistler’s oldest lakefront parks and the upgrades are part of the Resort Municipality of Whistler’s (RMOW) commitment to the continual investment and improvement of resort assets such as waterfront parks.

The improvements flowed from the 2008 Lakeside Master Plan and are intended to address neighbourhood expectations and concerns regarding commercial watercraft operations, zoning issues and vehicle traffic. The Lakeside Master Plan was created from a public consultation process and included two public open houses and two online surveys.

Mayor Nancy Wilhelm-Morden said, “I would like to acknowledge the staff for all of their hard work on this project. Lakeside Park ensures that Whistler’s waterfront parks continue to be family-friendly gathering places for both residents and visitors. I would also like to thank the surrounding neighbours for their cooperation and support during construction.”

The RMOW manages 31 community and neighbourhood parks within Whistler’s municipal boundaries. The RMOW recognizes that green spaces serve many purposes: They provide the community with clean air and water, promote a healthy lifestyle by encouraging walking, swimming, cycling and other leisure activities, and provide an important part of the Whistler experience for visitors to the resort community.

The schedule for the Lakeside opening celebration includes:

Please note in the event of rain, the Lakeside Park celebration will be rescheduled to take place Friday September 7, 2012 from 4 to 6 p.m.