Construction for the Chinatown Gateway Arch is scheduled to be completed in October.
The construction of the Chinatown Gateway Arch is scheduled to begin in April, with more than two dozen workers from China arriving to aid construction.
The arch is to be built on Somerset Street West at Cambridge Street. The elaborate design of the arch mimics the royal structure of ancient China, says Grace Xin, executive director for the Somerset Street Chinatown BIA.
Specialists from China will travel to Ottawa to help the construction process and to paint the arch. The City of Beijing will pay for about 30 technicians and artisans to travel to and stay in the Chinatown community.
Xin says Ottawa and Beijing are sister cities and the building of the arch will symbolize the partnership between them.
The arch is expected to be completed by Oct. 13.
The total contribution for the project from the City of Beijing is about $300,000. The entire project is expected to cost about $750,000, with the other funds coming from the federal and provincial governments, the City of Ottawa and the BIA. Xin says the BIA is still working on raising its planned $150,000 contribution.
She says the BIA has a fundraising committee that meets with local corporations and individuals in order to raise funds.
While a lack of funding was a barrier to the start of construction last year, the lack of funds no longer seems to be a problem.
The lowest point of the gateway will stand about five metres above the pavement, which is the same height as an overpass. The highest point will reach about 10 metres above the ground. The gateway will weigh approximately 130 tonnes.
The plan is to construct the sections of the arch in a tent behind the Yangtze restaurant, less than half a block away from the installation site. Since this area is residential, Xin says project managers must contain noise and dust levels.
Delcan Corp. is the Ottawa-based construction company that is working with Chinese technicians on the project.
Eric Darwin of the Dalhousie Community Association says he is looking forward to the completion of the project because he believes Chinatown needs to update its image.
“Chinatown needs to re-invent itself,” he says. “The gate will help a lot in terms of making its presence visible (in Ottawa). It’s going to be a nice gate and it’s going to be the first new element in Chinatown for several years.”