The District of 100 Mile House will not be opening the municipal campgrounds this summer.
Tammy Boulanger, the district's chief administrative officer, said the decision was made due to the unsanitary nature of the outhouse/washroom facility at the campgrounds. In recent years the district has received numerous complaints about it which led to council choosing to remove the facilities altogether.
"Council discussed what the possible options were. A simple new outhouse similar to the ones you see at roadside rest stops was quoted between $40,000 to $70,000," Boulanger said.
The average yearly revenue of the campground is $7,000, less the contracted rate of the campground attendant. With council currently pursuing other more expensive projects they decided they couldn't justify replacing the washrooms at this time.
Mayor Maureen Pinkney said that a majority of the people who typically use the campgrounds tent, so the lack of washrooms would present a problem. Furthermore, the pending replacement of the nearby Horse Lake Road Bridge is also a factor they considered.
"The current unknown date of the bridge replacement and its costs associated, along with other factors and complications of the campground, Council felt it was best to just sit tight on proper washrooms at this point," Pinkney said. "(The) campgrounds will remain closed for this year and we will have to see what happens after that."
Boulanger said that after the bridge is completed council will revisit the issue and decide the long-term future of the campgrounds.
