Thursday, November 30, 2023
VOLUME 6 I ISSUE 23
MERIDIANSOURCE.CA
DARP enters next phase JEANNETTE BENOIT-LEIPERT STAFF WRITER
.................................. Phase one of the Downtown Area Redevelopment Plan (DARP) is complete, with construction now finished on 50 St. between 49 and 50 Ave. Downtown Area Redevelopment Committee (DARC) chairperson, Ben Harrison, says now that the necessary underground work is complete, the next phase will include some visually appealing upgrades. “There are still some pieces yet to come. Currently, when someone goes down to that street, they’ll notice that there’s sort of an area where the sidewalk is in and the curb is in, but there’s a strip along the sidewalk and along the curb where there isn’t any concrete at present,” said Harrison. “N e x t s p r i ng , o nc e the weather allows for proper temperatures for pouring and curing of concrete, that will be completed.” He says being able to move around the city is an important aspect for business owners
and patrons. “It is good that it’s open again and we look forward to the completion of those next elements when I think people will get a more full understanding of what the vision was behind this project.” There will be some landscaping elements added to the downtown core when the weather allows. “Everything from bed-edgers, planting beds, tree plantings that are still yet to come. There will be some benches and other amenities, things like garbage receptacles.” One of the main goals of DARC is to make the downtown area a more appealing place to gather for events. “Any sort of organization that wants to use the downtown as the site for their fundraiser or their celebration … we really do welcome any kind of group within the community to feel like the downtown is theirs,” said Harrison, adding that one of the projects DARC has started working on is a parking lot area near the corner of
VIP limousine shopping returns
Meridian Source File Photo
Some shoppers will be chauffeured around the city to local retailers on Sunday during the first Holiday Train event since the one pictured above, in 2019. High Roller Limousine Service will provide the VIP shopping experience this year. GEOFF LEE STAFF WRITER
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Jeannette Benoit-Leipert Meridian Source
City workers take advantage of the balmy November weather, painting the new curbs downtown where the sidewalks have been extended following construction.
49 St. and 50 Ave. “It’s the parking lot that got painted green over the summer and our goal is for that to kind of act as temporary, experimental park square where community groups could use
it for movie nights, for BBQs, fundraisers, things like that.” The goal for next summer is to add some additional elements, such as benches, tables, and lighting. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
Get ready to board the Holiday Train for a VIP shopping experience with multiple whistlestops at local retailers. The fun event, originally introduced in 2019, will be back on track with limousine service this Sunday from 12:30 to 6 p.m. “It is a shopping event that is raising money for the Salvation Army Food Bank,” said organizer Dawn Hames from Dawn Interiors & Fashions.
High Roller Limousine Service will take shoppers to Cliff Rose for Clothes, Dawn Interiors & Fashions, Olive & Birch, Kalon Custom Collective, Hot Peppers, The Den YLL, Sheepskin Loft, Willow Creek Clothing & Collectibles, Walkn On Water Toys and Boutique Noir. “Let the limo do the navigating while you sit back and enjoy the experience with friends and family or co-workers,” said Hames. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2