The Evergreen Line will not only move passengers when it opens in late 2014, it will also move buildings.
Approximately 150 properties will be affected by the $1.4-billion Burnaby-to- Coquitlam transit line and the project's recently-released design consultation discussion guide shows areas where the line could be encroaching on private land.
For example, in Burquitlam, several homes on the west side of of Clarke Road are expected to come down to permit an elevated guideway to run from Como Lake Avenue to a tunnel portal south of Kelmsley Avenue.
Transportation ministry spokesperson David Crebo said the west side of Clarke was chosen to avoid a large multi-family complex across the street as well as for other factors.
In choosing the location, the ministry looked at providing "the best balance of interests and impacts within the project's technical and financial considerations," Crebo stated in an email.
He said discussions are already taking place with owners whose properties will be affected by the Evergreen Line and every effort is being made to arrive at "consensual" agreements with owners, who will be paid market value for their homes.
One homeowner who has lived at 615 Clark Rd. for most of her life since her family bought it in 1946 said she'll be sad to leave her 70-year character home to make way for the Evergreen Line.
Patricia Harris grew up in the house and remembers how pastoral the neighbourhood was when her family grew hay and raised cattle on 5.5 acres of property. She and her husband acquired the house in 1963 and raised their daughter there. It's still a well-kept home with an attractive veranda and a small front yard.
"I love my house. Since I was little, it was a big part of my life," Harris said, adding that she would like to stay in the neighbourhood but is worried the compensation package won't provide enough for her and her husband to buy another house nearby.
"We were expecting to spend the rest of our lives here," Harris said.
She's waiting for an appraisal, which is expected to take place in the next couple of weeks.
THE ROUTE
With some exceptions, most of the 11 km route avoids conflict with private property.
The Evergreen Line will begin at Lougheed Town Centre in Burnaby and travel along the centre of North Road to avoid conflict with homes and businesses in Coquitlam. It will veer to the east and stop at Burquitlam Plaza, where a station will be built, and then cross Como Lake Avenue to the west, continuing downhill to a tunnel portal south of Kelmsley Avenue.
In Port Moody, the Evergreen Line will exit from the 2 km tunnel under Barnet Highway near the former Andres Wines site and continue at ground level along the CP Rail right-of-way.
(Construction of the tunnel is expected to start from the Port Moody end, with excavated material sent back through the tunnel entrance and a staging area located nearby.)
After exiting from the tunnel, the Evergreen Line will travel through Port Moody along the CP Rail tracks, stopping at two stations — one at the West Coast Express station and another at Ioco Road, with a third being considered. The line will then travel under Barnet Highway and along the north side of the CPR tracks past Falcon Drive, before transitioning to an elevated guideway near Bond Street in Coquitlam.
The Evergreen Line will remain elevated to avoid conflict with Scott and Hoy creeks before returning to ground level to travel under the Mariner Way overpass and enter Coquitlam Central Station at the Coquitlam transit exchange site.
Coquitlam Central Station will also be designed to accommodate a spur line to Port Coquitlam, according to preliminary design documents, just as the Lougheed station was built to accommodate the Evergreen Line.
Leaving Coquitlam Central Station, the Evergreen Line will run north on an elevated guideway, along the west side of Pinetree Way. It will then cross to the east side of Pinetree Way near Northern Avenue to avoid existing buildings. The line will continue north, crossing Guildford Way, and end near Douglas College.
Where exactly the Douglas College station will go is still unknown because there are several issues undecided. The city of Coquitlam would like to see another station at Lincoln Avenue to serve a growing Town Centre population. As well, pushing the terminus too far north could have an impact on the Evergreen Cultural Centre and Town Centre Park, and there are concerns about having it too close to Pinetree secondary school, said Jim McIntyre, Coquitlam's General Manager of Planning and Development. If it's too far south, it will be too close to the Coquitlam Central Station.
As well, a 100-metre tail track is necessary to store Evergreen cars and will need to be taken into consideration in the design.
"It's a bit of a balancing act right now," McIntyre said.
THE MONEY
TransLink's council of mayors is expected to meet with Shirley Bond, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, on Monday, Oct. 19 to discuss funding for TransLink.
How TransLink will fund its $400 million share of the Evergreen Line is still an open question.
But residents who want to know more about the Evergreen Line route, construction and timelines, and who want to offer their feedback can attend a meeting on the Evergreen Line organized by the ministry for locations in Port Moody, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Burnaby.
The meetings will last three hours, with the first two hours to give members of the public an opportunity to view display boards and ask questions of project team members; the last hour will be a question-and-answer session. More information is available at www.evergreenline.gov.bc.ca.
Meeting dates are as follows:
• Port Moody, Saturday, Oct. 17, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., PoMo rec complex, 300 Ioco Rd.;
• Port Moody, Wednesday, Oct. 21, 6 to 9 p.m., Old Orchard Hall, 646 Bentley Rd.;
• Coquitlam, Thursday, Oct. 22, 6 to 9 p.m., Coquitlam city hall, 3000 Guildford Way;
• Burnaby, Saturday, Oct. 24, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.., Stoney Creek community school, 2740 Beaverbrook Cres., Burnaby;
• Burnaby, Thursday, Oct. 29, 6 to 9 p.m., Stoney Creek community school, 2740 Beaverbrook Cres.;
• Port Coquitlam, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 6 to 9 p.m., PoCo Inn and Suites, 1545 Lougheed Hwy., Port Coquitlam.
• Coquitlam, Saturday, Nov. 7, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Coquitlam city hall, 3000 Guildford Way.
dstrandberg@tricitynews.com