White Rock solicits donations from pier users for seismic upgrade

A digital terminal solicits donations to help seismically upgrade the White Rock pier.

It took eight months and cost $4 million for the White Rock pier to be re-opened after it was badly damaged in a windstorm in December 2018.

And it will cost nearly four times that much for the city to seismically upgrade the wooden pier, which was originally constructed back in 1914 and has become an iconic landmark for both locals and tourists.

Unable to secure funding from the provincial or federal governments, the city has installed a digital donation box on the pier. It gives visitors the opportunity to tap their credit card to donate between $5 and $20 toward the $15 million seismic upgrades.

In an email, the City of White Rock said it was "looking for creative approaches, and the donation box was felt to be a good way to bring awareness.” It added the city is reluctant to hit up taxpayers for the substantial upgrades needed.

“White Rock has a very small base. For example, raising $300,000 from taxpayers would require a one per cent tax increase. A project of the pier's magnitude is not attainable in the short term given the amount that's needed,” the statement said.

UBC political science professor Stewart Prest says for this project, the donation box make sense. “It’s not something that is a need-to-have item, it’s not a core service for the community, so that’s the kind of situation where it may make sense for the city to explore other kinds of funding opportunities,” said Prest.

CTV News asked pier users about the donation box. Many were surprised, but no one was opposed.

“I don’t have anything against making donations instead of dipping into the government coffers for everything,” said Rick Freeman.

“I think it’s good, something like this needs a lot of maintenance, so I think it’s good to get some money off people who use it,” added Mike Harrison.

“A lot of visitors come here, and it’s a lot for the community of White Rock to bear, so yeah, I think it’s a good idea,” said Mary Clarke.

Because so many tourists visit the pier, many users liked the idea of giving those visitors an opportunity to contribute to the much-needed seismic work.

“It’s something that has to get done, and you’ve got to ask. If you don’t ask, nothing happens, right? If you want to ask, go ahead,” said White Rock resident Dan Saunders.

“If they want to come here and that want to donate, that’s great. If they don’t, then it’s free for everybody,” added his wife Noni Saunders.

The emailed statement from White Rock said the city has set aside $3.1 million for the project, but that leaves it nearly $12 million short. Prest says it’s not unprecedented for cities to pursue outside funding for big legacy projects, but suggests it may have better luck raising money from corporate sponsors than the general public.

“I don’t think we are quite at a point where we will see the 'Rogers White Rock Pier,' but there may be other ways in which those gifts can be recognized, and there can be some commemoration without it becoming just yet another corporate sponsorship opportunity,” said Prest.

For now, it’s just a simple donation box with a QR code about how the money will be spent, that pier users can either tap with their credit card, or walk on by.