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Future cenotaph site in Central Saanich’s Centennial Park finally decided

COUNCIL NEWS: District of Central Saanich, May 1, 2017
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Coming out of the May 1 Central Saanich council meeting the confirmed location for the cenotaph memorial site in Centennial Park is Site A. (District of Central Saanich)

The site of the future cenotaph memorial in Central Saanich is finally known.

Central Saanich council met Monday, May 1 and resumed what had been delayed from the previous meeting: the location of the cenotaph site. The decision was supposed to be made Tuesday, April 18, but Mayor Ryan Windsor and Councillor Christopher Graham were absent and present council members said everyone should be included in the decision.

The cenotaph location in Centennial Park was approved by the District of Central Saanich back in November 2016; however, there were three possible sites within the park for the project to break ground. Ultimately, it came down to two locations, Site A and Site B. Site A is more north near Wallace Drive and site B is further south on Wallace at the corner of Hovey Road.

Site A has been chosen by council; the decision wasn’t unanimous. Councillors Bob Thompson and Alicia Holman were in opposition to Site A. Both councillors said Site B would have better visibility and less interference from the baseball field.

“Now that we’ve got a location we really need to come up with a design and really understand the design so we can come up with a full and complete memorial,” said Windsor in a phone call Tuesday.

In terms of coming up with the design, Windsor said drawing inspiration from other existing cenotaphs could possibly speed up the completion of the project, adding that having it finished before this year’s Remembrance Day ceremonies would be a “tall order” given how complex the design might be and other considerations of landscaping.

“It may be prudent for the Cenotaph Committee to weigh in one last time, but that might slow it down a bit,” Windsor said.

Over all, Windsor said he expects council to move forward with the design process between now and the end of June, also adding, “It’s essential that (the memorial’s) all in place for 2018.”

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The view of the confirmed cenotaph site in Centennial Park looking southwest across from Wallace Drive. (District of Central Saanich)