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Osoyoos Desert Centre officially breaks ground on new boardwalk

How do you take the stuffiness out of an annual general meeting? You hold it outdoor on a gloriously warm fall day, and at the end you give everyone a power tool and have them pose for pics.

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who> Smiles all around for ceremonial ground breaking

That's how it all went down Tuesday afternoon at the Osoyoos Desert Centre, where the folks in charge of the facility -- the Osoyoos Desert Centre Society -- mixed their 2021 AGM with sunshine and the latest scoop on one of the most important projects in the Centre's history -- the removal and replacement of their boardwalk.

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who>

Why is a mere boardwalk so important? Because at the Centre, where you'll find one of the only pockets of semi-aid desert shrubland in the entire country, the territory is far too fragile and far too rarified for walking or driving. Or cycling or e-biking, for that matter.

So the boardwalk is the one and only way to get around.

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who>

Thankfully, it's really, really long. At 1.5 kilometers, it rambles leisurely around the 67-acre parcel, giving everyone who hops aboard -- and there's an average of 10,000 visitors a year according to the Society -- a great look at the whole place and all the flora and fauna that makes it so special.

But as PentictonNow can attest after we walked much of it Tuesday morning, the boardwalk, built from wood some 22 years ago, is on its last legs. If it wasn't going to be removed, it would soon fall apart all on its own.

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who>

That's why the Society was so psyched way back in February when they learned they'd landed a healthy $834,789 tourism recovery grant from the Province of BC to replace the thing.

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who>

And on Tuesday, amongst regular AGM stuff, they announced who's been contracted to do the job. Then they announced work would commence immediately -- as in the very next day -- and would continue throughout the winter to a projected March completion.

Not surprisingly, Desert Centre manager Leor Oren was a pretty happy guy when we flagged him down during the festivities. And he took a few minutes to give us the straight goods.

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who> Leor Oren chatting up the crowd Tuesday afternoon

"We have a layer here called biocrust on the soil that all of our native species require to grow," he explained. "But the biocrust is extremely fragile. If it's walked on, it breaks, and then it takes a half century to grow. So the boardwalk allows the habitat to do its thing.

"But it's falling apart. And there's always a risk of someone just falling through it. These things are extremely expensive to replace, but this time we're using composite decking, which means for the next 50-plus years we don’t need to worry."

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who>

Desert Centre volunteer project manager Larry Stone then filled in the details.

"We put out an invitation to tender," he said, "and we had eight contractors between here and Kelowna interested. I looked at the prices, then looked at their qualifications. Then I recommended (Osoyoos-based landscaping business) C3 Industries to the board. Their knowledge and expertise of having done these before in sensitive areas can’t be beat."

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who> Desert Centre Society prez Lee McFadyen

According to Stone, the current boardwalk will be cut into sections with a chainsaw and carefully removed via helicopter. The sections will then be stacked in the parking lot, where they'll wait for potential new homes.

"We'll put on Facebook and in the news that anyone who wants to pick up pieces can do so. We'll try to reuse as much as possible."

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who>

In virtually every aspect, said Stone, the new boardwalk will be superior to the original.

"There's no centre supports on the boardwalk right now," he said. "So it's very spongy in the middle. So what we're going to do is use precast concrete blocks. And every ten feet we'll put a double 2x8 beam, then we'll put a 2x8 joist every 16 inches on centre going lengthwise. So the whole thing will be supported every 16 inches on centre with pressure-treated wood."

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who>

Stone believes the pressure-treated support structure should last 40 years or more in the dry Osoyoos-area climate. As for the composite decking material, he ultimately chose highly rated Fiberon after "lots and lots of checking."

That the finished boardwalk will also be a foot wider (Stone claims you'll be able to drive a golf cart on it) and substantially more level to better suit wheelchair users would seem to make the project a no-brainer.

All in all, it's a massive upgrade for a facility Leor Oren believes is indispensable.

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who>

"The antelope brush ecosystem you see here used to be all over the valley," he said. "Now it's been mostly taken over by agriculture, so what we have here now is now extremely important because wildlife needs to have their habitat.

"If we lose one species because of lack of habitat, so many other species are impacted. Like the antelope brush, which provides food for little rodents, which provide food for hawks and cougars and bobcats, which are the cool animals everyone likes to see."

<who>Photo Credit: Osoyoos Desert Centre</who> This cougar sauntered through the Desert Centre earlier this year

Oren said the best time to visit the Centre is late April or early March, when the "antelope brush blooms."

"Everything here turns bright yellow," he said, "and everything smells like cinnamon buns. That's when the spadefoots -- our little amphibians -- are swimming in our ponds. It's when our bluebirds are laying their eggs and protecting their nests. It comes alive in spring."

<who>Photo Credit: Osoyoos Desert Centre</who> The spadefoot tadpole is one of the Centre's cutest residents

And late next April, it'll also have an awesome new boardwalk. Should be a perfect time to drop by.

For more information on the Osoyoos Desert Centre, go here.

<who>Photo Credit: NowMedia</who>



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