After some hiccups in the engineering process, Athabasca’s new riverfront development is underway.
Last week, a construction crew began pile driving at the site of River View Station, in the heart of downtown Athabasca at the corner of 50th Street and 50th Avenue.
The development met some delays in early June, when the crew heading up the project, Rose Country Developers, discovered a gas line running through the property and evidence of organic materials leftover from previous use.
Although the project’s construction had been slated to start in late spring, the snags set it back a few months.
Now that the work is underway, project manager Bruce Tuininga estimates the building will be ready by the end of the year, but weather and other factors will play a part in that timeline.
He said after the pilings go down, crews will start excavating the site and then pour concrete.
Joint venture partner Donna Gallinger said it was great to see the work starting up on her and her husband Bill’s first business undertaking.
“It feels awesome, totally awesome,” she said.
She said they already have some businesses lined up to fill the 5,000 square feet of commercial space, and hopes that once the building starts going up it will attract more attention.
The number of businesses that call the building home will depend on how much space each takes up, she added.
After the construction snags, the couple was hit with unforeseen engineering costs, which prompted them to bring another partner into the fold.
Neil Cameron, a pharmacist at Value Drug Mart, joined the venture in mid-summer, but was unavailable for comment.
Given the site’s prominent location in Athabasca’s core, town council has control over potential changes to the building. They exercised that power in June, accepting two of three proposed changes to the outside of the building.
Mayor Roger Morrill was happy to see the development move forward.
“It’s good to see the physical demonstration of confidence that Bill, Donna and Neil have expressed in this community by starting this project,” he said.
