Kinder Morgan’s pipeline project factors into City’s plans for beautifying airport gateway

By MICHELE YOUNG

Kinder Morgan’s plans to twin the Trans Mountain pipeline are being factored into discussions by a City task force looking into beautification of the Tranquille corridor, also known as the Airport-Brocklehurst Gateway.

Coun. Nelly Dever, a task force member, said today (Wednesday) a Kinder Morgan representative met with the group Tuesday night to get an idea of how the two proposals might work together.

“We wanted them to give an overview because the proposed twinning is right along phase one of our gateway project,” she said.

That phase one section is from the airport to the hairpin turn that leads to the straight stretch of Tranquille Road.

Among the ideas the task force has for that area are a roundabout at the airport entrance, better signage, putting hydro lines underground and a lookout plaza on the west side of the turn facing the airport runway field that would include ornamental trees and benches.

Phase two, from the hairpin to Crestline Street, includes a sidewalk on the north side of Tranquille and multi-use path on the south.

Phases three and four continue from Crestline to Riverbend seniors’ complex, but as that area is residential, it will be more complicated to do work along that stretch.

Dever said Tuesday’s discussion was around the City and Kinder Morgan working together on phase one so that work done by the City isn’t later ripped up if the pipeline twinning goes ahead.

“We discussed our vision for the area and would it be worthwhile working on a project for the area and doing improvements now that they would have to redo,” she said.

“The discussion yesterday was around how can we potentially work together on this project. . . . There is potential, absolutely.”

Kinder Morgan indicated it expects to know whether its project is a go by early October of 2015. Construction is anticipated for 2016 and 2017.

Dever said the phases are simply labels for the four segments of the corridor to be improved. They don’t have to be done in any particular order.

“We had every intention of approaching Kinder Morgan and asking them what their considerations were for phase one. We knew phase one would likely occur after phase two,” she said.

“We’re not going to look at making any changes in that area until we know what’s happening with them.

“We’ll know before their approval what they’re willing to do. It could be a fairly costly project.”

Kinder Morgan has asked for the City’s plans in writing. That will be submitted after the task force runs its final vision past council next month and gets its approval.

The wish list of beautification ideas came from the North Shore neighbourhood plan that was developed through community consultation several years ago, said Dever.

There will be community consultation before any construction goes ahead, but the ideas were already discussed in those previous public meetings as well.