There is a new set of public washrooms available in Spring Creek Mountain Village and Town of Canmore ratepayers are on the hook for the maintenance schedule.
The new washrooms are part of the historical recreation of the Canmore Opera House in local developer Frank Kernick’s Spring Creek Mountain Village redevelopment.
While the Opera House was approved several years ago, a draft lease with the municipality setting out the agreement over washroom maintenance was never executed as the facility’s construction wasn’t completed.
Now, general manager of municipal infrastructure Michael Fark said the building is almost complete and a revised lease with the community’s property owners association is ready for approval by council.
“Given that time has passed, administration and the property owners association have met and discussed lease updates,” Fark told council at a meeting in September.
The lease proposed to make washroom servicing the responsibility of the Town of Canmore, which Fark said is in line with other public washroom facilities already maintained by staff. The responsibility was not specifically set out in the original lease, and was requested to be included by the property owners association.
The washrooms have public access at the back of the building along the pathway and bridge that connects Spring Creek to the rest of the community. It is expected that the majority of the use will be by the broader public and not actually residents of Spring Creek. The estimated cost to the municipality is $4,500 a year and would be incorporated into its already standard custodial contract.
The agreement with the property owners association also provides rental rates at a discounted amount for Canmore residents who want to rent the Opera House. The lease also sets out that public books cannot be restricted – that the Opera House is expected to have open access.
