Tram plan gets back on track
Sockeye Special could run again

Within five years, Richmond residents could see a restored Interurban Tram operating on a 2.4 kilometre route between the Garry Point Park and Britannia Heritage Shipyard.

But two people who addressed the parks and recreation committee Tuesday think the city should stretch the line furtherall the way to nearby London Farm.

"We can't look at it in small terms, we have to be much more visionary about it," said Bob Ransford, who also chairs the Britannia Heritage Shipyard advisory committee.

"I think the tram project is really a catalyst that's going to move Steveston to the next level. It's going to add leverage to all the heritage sites in Steveston."

Council members endorsed the Steveston Interurban Tram feasibility study and gave staff direction to begin looking at routes, who owns the land, and where the money will come from.

The cost? Between $7 and $8 million, phased in over five years. The money will likely come from the city's capital budget.

The city will also explore other funding options, such as corporate sponsorship, grants and using money obtained through development cost charges on the B.C. Packers site.

The fate of the "Sockeye Special" has been up in the air for a number of years. The tram ran from Steveston to False Creek in the 1930s to 1950s.

The Steveston Interurban Restoration Society have been put thousands of hours into bringing the 1220 back into shape, but ran into difficulty finding funding when it appeared, up until recently, that the city would not build a track. The society even considered taking the tram to Surrey on a 10-year lease in return for the money to bring the tram into running order.

But society chair Michel Brisebois says the response of committee Tuesday will breathe new life into the organization and make it easier to find funding.

"We're quite happy with this," Brisebois told The Richmond Review. "It's a positive step forward."

If the plan is approved without changes, a temporary car barn would be built in 2003 on the Britannia site and a permanent building built the following year, where the tram's restoration will be completed.

A one-kilometre stretch of track would be built in 2005 and the remaining 1.4 kilometres the following year. Staff will explore various routes through Steveston Village, via the B.C. Packers site, to Britannia.

Dana Westermark, who is developing a number of properties in the London Farm area, said there is about $400,000 in development cost charges coming from his properties that could easily be used to pay for the car barn at London.

Westermark said his company, and likely others, would be interested in sponsoring the tram project.

"I think there's opportunities to get lots of support if you're bold and go at it in a big way," Westermark said.

City staff said the extension to London was discussed in preparing their report, but was felt to be too far away from the hub of tourism.

"The bottom line is you have to be visible to the tourist market," said Connie Baxter, heritage sites coordinator. "That tourist market is the village of Steveston."

Westermark said residential development in the London area is happening quickly, and the tram's ridership could benefit from residents travelling into Steveston Village.

Councillors Harold Steves and Bill McNulty were enthusiastic about the extension.

"I believe you look at the whole project as opposed to piecemeal," McNulty said. "I'm for it if we can save that kind of money."

Staff were directed to look at land ownership between Britannia and London Farm in case the extension becomes a consideration.