Yorkson Village at 208 Street was exciting for Jason and Colleen Gilmore.

They had no issues living so close to the freeway. One of the benefits was nothing obstructing their view from their backyard. There were no neighbours to look at.

But now the couple are looking onto a large concrete bridge that straddles a retention pond behind their fence.

“We had no problem with the freeway, we knew that going in. But we were told nothing was going to go in behind us,” said Jason. “It’s a ridiculous structure.”

He wishes he would have known it was going to be built before buying into the neighbourhood.

“They should have put a sign up or something,” he said.

He believes the exposed concrete on the bridge is going to be a perfect canvas for neighbourhood graffiti artists. He also worries it will be a hangout for teens.

The bridge is so large because it is designed to accommodate maintenance trucks, said the Township.

“For whatever it costs, that money could have gone into a playground. They could have accomplished the same thing with a culvert and a berm,” he said.

The retention pond, required at all new residential subdivisions, is a “mosquito breeding paradise,” he said.

The stagnant water the bridge crosses over is full of algae.

Township planner Dave Anderson said there will be extensive planting, including trees to “make it aesthetically pleasing.”

“There is top soil going in and plantings coming,” Anderson said. There is also going to be trees planted inside the ponds that offer nutrients and environmental benefits required by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

“The bridge is being constructed according to design drawings and is consistent with Township standards . . . The bridge crossing is being built to support maintenance vehicles,” wrote Al Neufeld, manager of parks design and development to the Gilmores.

Township staff recently met with the Gilmores.

Where culverts were once used, retention ponds are now required because they mitigate erosion and sediment getting into waterways.

“Without these ponds, it could potentially damage watercourses,” said Anderson.