Stories from Tri-City News headlines of decades past is a recurring feature as the publication marks its 40th anniversary in 2024.
In the early summer of 1993, a standoff between residents was threatening to turn Dawes Hill in the Cape Horn neighbourhood into Coquitlam’s version of the Battle of Hamburger Hill.
But instead of fighting for position in Vietnam, these combatants were clashing over traffic.
Some residents wanted the steep road in southeast Coquitlam closed so increasing numbers of commuters would reroute elsewhere. Others wanted the route kept open so traffic wouldn’t invade their neighbouring streets.
Early on a Thursday morning, a truck was on standby to deliver heavy concrete barriers at three sites. But protestors wouldn’t let the truck’s crane lift the barriers from its flatbed.
RCMP officers tried to disperse the crowd, but it wasn’t budging.
Eventually, the truck left.
Some members of Coquitlam council were undeterred in their quest to implement the road’s closure on a three-month trial basis.
But Mayor Lou Sekora voted against the plan.
He said the only way the barriers could be installed would be if the city obtained a court order, and he wasn’t about to request one.
Instead, at an emergency council meeting called in the wake of the protest it was decided to put off any further attempts to close the road until the public could be fully informed about options to improve traffic flow on Dawes Hill Road.
The common goal, Sekora said, would be to secure an agreement from the provincial government to make improvements to the nearby Lougheed Highway and Cape Horn interchange that could relieve traffic jams on residential streets.
The Tri-City News has covered civic affairs, local crime, festivals, events, personalities, sports and arts in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody since 1983. Bound back issues of the paper are available at the Coquitlam Archives, while digital versions of several past years can be found at issuu.com.
