One of the most popular spots in Sooke for locals and visitors is getting a user friendly facelift.
 
Sooke council approved a contract for $335,376 with Global Pro Systems for upgrades to the Sooke Potholes parking lot.
 
Work includes widening two staircases that access beaches from parking lot one, constructing two accessible pit toilets, adding way-finding and visitor information, and refurbishing the parking lot to provide accessible stalls and additional parking and social distancing capacity.
 
The district had awarded an engineering services contract in June 2022 to McElhanney for construction-ready design, project management, and construction services for the project.
 
According to a staff report, the work should be completed by 21 May 2023.
 
Although Sooke received a grant of $335,000 for the project from the provincial government through the Community Economic Resilience Infrastructure Fund in 2020, costs for construction have increased since the grant application.
 
An additional $50,000 will be allocated in the 2023 budget from the Canada Community Building Fund (formerly known as the gas tax) to cover the increase in costs.
 
Rick Stiebel.

Which parking lot 1? There are a total of 4 parking lots and depending on who owns what they're numbered differently. It's confusing, someone please... sort this out!