Rotary Club of Sidney signs have been sprouting up since 2017 in various peninsula locations (Wain Rd, West Saanich and Landsend Rds) where club members have been busy pouring concrete pads and, so far, erecting seven bus shelters onto these sculpted bases.
With their simple, clean lines, these shelters offer benches, solar-powered lighting, a pocket-book library and bike-rack lockers, so cyclists can ride to the bus stop and leave their two-wheeled companions in a safe place while taking advantage of public transit to move about the community.
This continuing project was first launched in 2016 when former club presidents Roger Hind and Cosmo Pessoa combined with North Saanich district administrators to find a few locations to build these supports to enhance local environmental initiatives. The last two shelters have involved locations within the Pauquachin First Nation, whose territory forms an integral part of the Saanich Peninsula.
The Rotary Club of Sidney members’ work has involved clearing/leveling the base area, building concrete forms, and pouring/finishing the concrete into shelter bases. After a minimum of two weeks of curing time, members then bolt the locally fabricated shelter/bike locker pieces onto the concrete pad, installing benches and bookshelves (with plastic protection covers). Clarke Engineering, a Victoria metal fabrication company, constructed the shelters themselves, while Associated Sheet Metal fabricates the bike locker/book boxes in Saanichton. Motion-activated solar-powered lighting has been manufactured and installed by Urban Solar Ltd of Victoria. Many thanks to our fabricating partners for their project assistance.
Once the shelters have been completed, the club has been very appreciative to be reimbursed a portion of the funding from District 5020 Community Grant Funds. Sidney Rotary fund sources include the club running several games to support the annual Saanich Fall Fair, which occurs every year on Labour Day weekend. We also operate a food cart at local events and ran a rubber duck race in the Gorge in 2021.
As Rotarians in our community and around the world already know, we’re busy doing good things in our community and having fun doing it at the same time!
