Council debate ends with ‘Bridge Park’

By Lyonel Doherty

Times-Chronicle

After a friendly debate on town council, Oliver’s newest park has been given a name.

Town council chose the name “Bridge Park” on Monday. 

Staff recommended the new park be called Riverside Park as per the town’s Outdoor Public Space Naming Policy that places a priority on naming parks after nearby geographical features. The other option was Bridge Park.

Construction of the new park was recently completed, featuring benches, tables, a bike repair station, a water bottle filling station and a beautiful handcrafted statue of The Salmon Chief by Smoker Marchand. 

Councillors Aimee Grice and Petra Veintimilla favoured having a little fun by engaging the public in a Facebook poll, with the options being Bridge Park or Oliver Spirit Salmon Park. 

But Coun. Larry Schwartzenberger didn’t like that idea, saying council should be able to make a decision now without delaying the matter. He preferred the name Bridge Park because that seems to be popular with people on social media.

Councillor Dave Mattes agreed, saying he supported the town’s naming policy, adding that Bridge Park is the correct choice given the location. 

Mayor Martin Johansen favoured Bridge Park, too, noting the Salmon Chief statue already honours the salmon in the river. 

The final vote was 3-2 in favour of Bridge Park.

Veintimilla commented that naming the park was a “bit nutty” because it was one of the more difficult decisions that council had to make.