Surrey has developed a heated and enclosed picnic shelter so people can gather year round, no matter what the weather conditions.
A group who regularly gather at North Surrey Community Park for card playing met with the city's parks committee and asked for the improved shelters.
The prototype, which was designed and built for $50,000, was completed last week and has been put at North Surrey Community Park, in the 15800-block 97 A Avenue.
The structure will be tested for about a year, then it's believed competitive bidding can bring additional shelters at about $35,000 to $40,000 apiece.
The shelters lock at night to keep vandals out and the walls are made of a clear, scratch-resistant plastic. It is also resistant to graffiti, which will reduce clean up costs.
"This is one that hasn't been built in North America, we understand," said Coun. Mary Martin, who couldn't say how many will be built if the test period is successful. "I can say we get requests every single week or every month from different communities. We just want to make sure this one is going to be a successful one."