Public washroom now open at Woodenhead Park
A new washroom facility at Woodenhead Park in Revelstoke is now open to the public. Located just off the Trans-Canada Highway near the Victoria Road entrance to city, the park is a popular stopping spot for tourists and those travelling to other destinations along the highway between BC and Alberta.
In 2020, during the height of COVID-19, public concerns arose over people using the park to relieve themselves. This because the public was no longer being able to use washroom facilities in nearby businesses due to pandemic related restrictions at the time.
In August 2020, the City of Revelstoke placed two temporary toilet facilities at Woodenhead Park for use by the public. The temporary facilities were funded through the Resort Municipality Initiative.
In the fall of 2021, the city received just over $380,000 in grant money from the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture & Sport’s Tourism Dependent Communities Fund to build a permanent washroom facility at Woodenhead Park. At that time, the project work was awarded to Vic Van Isle Construction. A report to council from Director of Engineering Steve Black noted construction of the washroom facility was expected to be completed by June 2022. However, in an email to StokeFM for this story, Black said Vic Van Isle went into receivership before construction of the project began.
In August 2023, Black brought forward another report to council regarding the building of the permanent washroom facility at Woodenhead Park. The project was re-tendered, and then awarded to Jordan Cochrane Construction Ltd. at a cost of just over $600,00. The project costs were covered through the original Tourism Dependent Communities Fund grant and the Resort Municipality Initiative Program.
Construction of the washroom began in September 2023, with Jordan Cochrane Construction working on the project over the 2023-2024 winter to meet a proposed opening date of May 2024.
The project was completed on May 16, with the facility officially opening to the public just ahead of the 2024 May long weekend.
Woodenhead Park is named for the iconic woodenhead sculpture created in the 1930s by a local resident, Peter Fuoco. When he wasn’t working on the Big Bend Highway Project, Fuoco used a double-bitted axe and some chisels to create the wood sculpture. Government officials were so impressed by the finished piece they placed it on the highway with a sign that read “Don’t be ‘woodenheaded’. Drive carefully. You’ll live to enjoy the scenery.” It was one of the first road safety warnings in British Columbia.
When the Trans-Canada Highway opened in the 1960s, Woodenhead was moved into the town of Revelstoke where it became a local heritage artifact. You can often find tourists (and a few locals) taking photographs of themselves standing beside Woodenhead at its permanent home in its namesake park.
