Richmond plans for 7-storey inukshuk and Fraser River cranberry Olympic rings

mr.x · #1 Posted **Dec 4, 2009, 11:07 PM**

Olympic rings made out of cranberries to float in the Fraser

By Matthew Hoekstra - Richmond Review

Published: December 02, 2009 11:00 AM
Updated: December 02, 2009 3:59 PM

Richmond's iconic berry—13 million of them—will be dropped into the Middle Arm of the Fraser River to form a floating tribute to the Olympics next February.

The berries will float in a form carrying the design of the Canadian Olympic Committee's logo, including a giant maple leaf and set of Olympic rings, in the river offshore from the Richmond Olympic Oval.

City officials are going one step further by filling the water feature outside Richmond City Hall with cranberries to give the public an up-close look at the island city's No. 1 agricultural industry.

"The idea was the world is going to be here and we want to tell the stories of Richmond, particularly around our industry, culture and heritage," said city spokesperson Ted Townsend.

It's part of a new program called Richmond Revealed, a series of public displays showcasing Richmond industries to the world during the Games.

Townsend said the program involves a series of partnerships and is "cost-neutral" to the city. Cranberries are being donated by local growers for the displays, which will last throughout the Games.

Townsend said last month city officials gave international media a successful sneak peak of the display by flooding the oval's water feature with cranberries.

The Richmond Revealed program will also include a seven-storey inukshuk to be built out of shipping containers. A room-sized model of the Canadarm, Canada's contribution to the International Space Station designed by Richmond-based MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates, along with other aerospace projects will also be featured.

And on Feb. 14, 2010, a special Chinese New Year celebration will be staged, featuring a mass tai-chi performance and a dragon dance led by two dragons—150 metres and 75 metres long.

***

Olympic cranberry display

-13 million cranberries weighing 13,600 kilograms (30,000 pounds) will form the logo of the Canadian Olympic Committee in the Middle Arm

-It will cover 3,210 square metres (34,550 square feet)

-Over 30 anchors will hold the display in place

-All berries will come from Richmond farms

-Richmond is Canada’s largest producer of cranberries with more than 60 family-owned farms, the majority of which are part of the Ocean Spray co-operative

-Cranberries will be composted at the end of the installation

SpongeG · #2 Posted **Dec 4, 2009, 11:18 PM**

i was just reading about that

13 million cranberries to reveal Richmond to the world

http://www.cnw.ca/fr/releases/archiv.../02/c7320.html

pics at the link http://photos.newswire.ca/cnw-bin/cn...0091202_144052

Smooth · #3 Posted **Dec 4, 2009, 11:37 PM**

Hopefully seagulls don't like cranberries.

Mods... I think the title of the thread should say 7 storey inukshuk... not 17!

djh · #4 Posted **Dec 4, 2009, 11:43 PM**

I'm sorry, and credit to the farmers for trying...but this just sounds so parochial.

Makes me think of middle-of-nowhere hick towns that build the World's Biggest, I dunno, Duck, or Hockey Stick, to get some attention...yikes.

I think the only thing that will come of this is that the major news providers will run this in their "Of little consequence" filler news pages, and pat the fruit farmers association of BC or whatever they're called on the head and say "aah, isn't that nice, now back to the real news..."

bils · #5 Posted **Dec 4, 2009, 11:48 PM**

correction: it's SEVEN storey inukshuk

Yume-sama · #6 Posted **Dec 5, 2009, 12:32 AM**

Well, it sounds cool. But this is why some people hate the West.

They are starving and here we are floating 30,000 pounds of berries in a river, to then throw away.

Distill3d · #7 Posted **Dec 5, 2009, 1:04 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yume-sama

Well, it sounds cool. But this is why some people hate the West.

They are starving and here we are floating 30,000 pounds of berries in a river, to then throw away.

If you want to collect them and ship them to the starving people, be my guest.

SpongeG · #8 Posted **Dec 5, 2009, 1:05 AM**

i think it will make people aware of the industry so many people come here even from other parts of Canada and have no clue we have cranberries here

Xelebes · #9 Posted **Dec 5, 2009, 1:08 AM**

Fixed it for you guys.

wrenegade · #10 Posted **Dec 6, 2009, 9:21 PM**

I think it will provide quite a bit of exposure. The Olympic Oval is going to get a lot of attention in photos/video and having this cranberry display right at the doorstep will add to the spectacle. The aerial shots will be fantastic. I think this is awesome.

vanman · #11 Posted **Dec 6, 2009, 10:29 PM**

^ It is a very unique idea and yes the aerial shots will be incredible. It would look even cooler lit up at night although that probably wouldn't be possible. Who knows though, maybe they could aim a few spotlights at it

whatnext · #12 Posted **Dec 8, 2009, 3:11 AM**

What a great idea, putting a perfect food source for birds just steps away from a major flight path!

Chikinlittle · #13 Posted **Dec 8, 2009, 3:50 AM**

While it sounds nice n stuff, I think I might be more interested in the Inukshuk. Any additional news there? Details seem vague other than 'made of shipping containers'.