Smaller vessel
BC Ferries is replacing the regular vessel on the Saltery Bay-Earls Cove route with a smaller vessel for about a week.
The Island Sky will be temporarily removed from service at 3:20 pm on Sunday, February 3. It is expected to be back with the 3:20 pm sailing from Saltery Bay on Saturday, February 9.
The Bowen Queen will be on the route during that time. It can carry 70 cars and 400 passengers and crew, compared to the Island Sky’s capacity of 125 cars and 462 passengers and crew.
As BC’s new holiday, Family Day, falls on February 11, the alternate service overlaps the beginning of the long weekend.
Deborah Marshall, BC Ferries’ spokeswoman, said the company doesn’t expect to be causing “a big inconvenience for our customers. We are still seeing more winter loads. Even though it is a long weekend, we don’t expect to be seeing summer traffic volumes.”
The Bowen Queen doesn’t have an elevator, but washroom facilities will be available for customers who remain on the car deck. Food service is also limited.
The Island Sky is being taken out of service for regulatory inspection and maintenance of a right-angle drive unit.
While the Bowen Queen is on the route, BC Ferries will be doing dock trials and checking the transit time with the Island Sky from Saltery Bay to Departure Bay to prepare for that scenario during major berth work at the Westview and Little River terminals in 2014, Marshall said.
Open house
Powell River residents have an opportunity to find out more about the new Willingdon Creek Village residential care facility at a public open house.
Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) and Powell River Regional Hospital District (PRRHD) are holding the event from 7 to 9 pm on Wednesday, February 6 in the Evergreen Theatre at Powell River Recreation Complex. Representatives from both organizations will answer questions and deliver short presentations about the process and timing of the project.
Willingdon Creek Village is a $23.5-million partnership between PRRHD and VCH that will result in a replacement for the Olive Devaud Residence.
Plans for Willingdon Creek Village call for six houses, each with 17 single-occupant rooms, for a total of 102. Olive Devaud currently has accommodation for 81 residents.
Each room at the new facility will be equipped with ceiling lifts. There will also be shared living spaces for clients, an adult day program that accommodates 12 clients and a tunnel connecting the new facility to the hospital.
