Coun. Bill McNulty is spearheading a push to install a pier at Garry Point Park ahead of Canada 150 celebrations in 2017, which may feature a special tall ships festival in Steveston village, if all goes according to plan.
“We could be at the centre of celebrations on the West Coast,” said McNulty, of the upcoming national anniversary.
The councillor travelled to Japan last April to negotiate a visit from a unique Japanese tall ship, the Kaiwo Maru. Since that trip a tentative agreement has been reached between the City of Richmond and the ship owners for a May 2017 visit from the 110-metre-long Japanese “King of the Sea.”
The only problem is that Steveston needs a deep-water pier and Garry Point is the only place such a ship could rest.
“It allows us to accept boats of that kind of calibre into Steveston. So, from an economic point of view, it’s valuable for the boats to have this full service,” said McNulty.
However, economics played a role on Tuesday when city council’s parks committee nixed a recommendation from the parks department to spend $5 million on a permanent “legacy pier,” which would be attached to a row of permanent, yet presently unused pilings situated just off of the park’s southwest shoreline.
The pilings were initially used for the 2011 Ships to Shore event, however since then the docks were relocated to the inner harbour.
While there was no political will to build a “significant recreational amenity,” as the legacy pier was described in a parks department report, the committee also nixed the idea of a new $1.5 million removable pier.
While McNulty said he supported the latter idea, the committee told the parks department to reassess other options, including re-using the old docks.
Ergo, while the committee had asked staff to inquire about a permanent pier at Garry Point, it remains unclear if such an amenity will be built.
McNulty said he and a team of city staff would have to return to Japan early next year to finalize the deal for the Kaiwo Maru, adding face-to-face negotiations were necessary, as requested by the Japanese.
The Kaiwo Maru visited Steveston before, in 2005.
It holds a crew of 200 and has four large masts. It takes about one month for the ship to cross the Pacific Ocean and the cost of hosting the ship would be $575,000, according to the report.
In addition to the Kaiwo visit, the city is proposing an “enhanced” five-day Ships to Shore event during the Canada Day week in 2017.
The parks department has suggested using discretionary casino revenues (Council Community Initiatives Fund) to fund the event.
McNulty said such events would result in millions of dollars being spent in the city, not to mention cultural and social benefits.
