Against a backdrop of towers under construction and pile drivers echoing in the distance, representatives from all three levels of government announced the addition of a seventh stop on the Evergreen Line Thursday.

The new station will be situated at Lincoln Avenue and Pinetree Way in Coquitlam's City Centre, and represents a public-private partnership between the city and Pensionfund Realty Ltd., the firm that owns Coquitlam Centre shopping mall.

The federal government, through its P3 Canada Fund, will also contribute $7 million towards the construction and implementation costs. Once chosen, a private operator will build and finance the project.

The station is expected to open in tandem with the rest of the line in the summer of 2016.

"This station will enable the city to move forward with its densification plan," said Port MoodyWestwoodCoquitlam MP James Moore. "This additional station will mean more residents will be able to live in, and enjoy, the urban core of Coquitlam without rapidly increasing the number of cars on the roads."

According to Coquitlam city manager Peter Steblin, sifting through the finances of the deal was "very complex and involved many different parties."

He said Pensionfund Realty donated land on the mall site the province would have otherwise had to purchase to make way for the station. The company also contributed cash towards the deal, while paying future density bonuses on the highrise towers that will eventually be built on those lands. Other developers in the area will also be paying into the density bonus formula to help pay for the station.

When asked about Coquitlam's contribution, Stewart said the city will transfer land, as well as rights of way, to the project. The city will also front development cost charges for future developments in the area.

"The federal government is contributing something, the city is contributing something, [Coquitlam Centre's management company] Morguard is contributing something and other developers in the vicinity of Lincoln Station are also contributing something," Steblin said. "So it really is a true partnership between many players."

Like Steblin, Stewart praised the P3 funding formula.

"It's almost always simpler, I suspect, to simply let the taxpayer pay for an asset, to pay for it out of taxes," he said. "But in this economic time in particular, I think governments need to work a little harder in the interests of taxpayers."

jkurucz@thenownews.com