The Province of British Columbia is donating a piece of local history to the City of Port Moody to help protect and conserve architectural heritage in the community and to move forward with early construction of the Evergreen Line rapid transit project.

Centennial House will be moved from 2714 Clarke Street to accommodate the future Evergreen Line guideway, or track.

"We worked with the City of Port Moody to preserve an important historic building in the community," said Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Blair Lekstrom. "By conserving and celebrating historic places, we value our communities, our future and ourselves. The Centennial House will be in good hands."

"Port Moody takes pride in our heritage, and preserving one of the early Port Moody homes is very significant to council, and to our residents. This comes at a particularly significant time as we prepare to celebrate our centennial anniversary in 2013," said City of Port Moody Mayor Mike Clay. "We are very pleased to have been able to secure this arrangement with the Province and the Evergreen Project team, and thank them for their shared desire to preserve a piece of our history."

The City of Port Moody is facilitating the process to relocate the building to 126 Kyle Street. The City will move the house this summer. The City will also be engaging the public and arts groups to determine the future use of the building.

Centennial House is an Edwardian-style building dating back to 1910 and formerly known as the Appleyard Residence. The house is also valued for its association with Frederick Appleyard, who later acquired it. Appleyard worked in the lumber industry and served on the Port Moody City Council in 1917.

"The Centennial House, once home to one of Port Moody's founding City Councillors, Frederick Appleyard, is one of just a few remaining landmarks of the booming lumber town that became the City of Port Moody in 1913," said the Honourable James Moore, Senior Minister for British Columbia and Member of Parliament for Westwood - Port Coquitlam. "I am proud that we have the opportunity to work together as a community to give the Centennial House a new lease on life on Kyle Street."

Early construction of the Evergreen Line is underway to help accelerate the project schedule. Early construction includes installing underground power lines, removing buildings and widening roads. This work needs to occur before major construction, which will start after the Province selects the primary contractor later this summer.

"TransLink would like to thank the Province for their decision to donate this important piece of history," stated vice chair of Mayors' Council on Regional Transportation Peter Fassbender. "Not only will this generous donation allow for an accelerated start on the Evergreen Line project to bring improved transit options to Port Moody more quickly, but it will help maintain a piece of Port Moody's history and further enhance the community."

The Evergreen Line is expected to open in the late summer of 2016 and to create 8,000 jobs during construction.

Learn More:

Evergreen Line: www.evergreenline.gov.bc.ca

Photos of Centennial House can be viewed on the Evergreen Line on Facebook page: www.facebook.com/evergreenline

On Twitter: @TranBC

A backgrounder follows.

Contact:

Kate Trotter
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure
250 356-8241

BACKGROUNDER

Facts about the Evergreen Line

The Evergreen Line will be an 11-kilometre rapid transit line that will connect Coquitlam to Vancouver via Port Moody and Burnaby.

Why the Evergreen Line matters:

• More transit options with faster, more frequent and more efficient service, especially for commuters in the northeast sector.

• More economic opportunities for businesses near the Evergreen Line route and stations.

• 8,000 direct and indirect jobs from construction.

• Frequent service - every three minutes during peak periods and service almost 20 hours a day.

• Faster travel time - 15 minutes from Coquitlam City Centre to Lougheed Town Centre.

• From Coquitlam City Centre to Vancouver in 40 minutes, saving almost 45 minutes per day compared to driving.

• Direct connection without transfer to the Millennium Line.

• Projected ridership of 70,000 per day by 2021.

Funding for the Evergreen Line:

• The total project cost for the Evergreen Line is estimated to be $1.4 billion.

• Funding is being provided by the Province of British Columbia, the Government of Canada and TransLink.

• The Province is contributing $583 million and will also oversee construction of the project.

• The Government of Canada is contributing up to $417 million.

• TransLink is contributing $400 million and will operate the Evergreen Line when it is complete.

Contact:

Kate Trotter
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure
250 356-8241