Road closure near popular park in West Kelowna extended for two more weeks

A road closure near a popular park in West Kelowna has been extended because of unforeseen extra work.

On Thursday, the city said the closure of Upper Smith Creek Road, above Copper Ridge Drive, will be extended for the next two weeks to allow for approved subdivision-related work.

The city said the closure is needed because work crews have encountered significant rock that will require additional drilling and blasting.

Upper Smith Creek Road will be closed from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday, until May 29.

“While this closure will take two more weeks, it will also allow crews to pour concrete curbs and pave the road during this time, which would remove the need for a future one-week closure to complete that work this fall,” said the city.

It added that until May 29, crews will maintain access for emergency vehicles and local area residents only, meaning recreational users will be unable to use Upper Smith Creek Road to access Glen Canyon Regional Park and the Crown land recreational trails above Smith Creek during working hours.

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Upper Smith Creek Road will still be open evenings and weekends, including remaining open Victoria Day, Monday May 18, so recreationalists can enjoy the trails outside of construction hours.

Users must maintain safe social distancing of two meters when using all parks and trails.

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