Concerns were raised at Tuesday’s Smithers town council meeting about the Dze L’ Kant housing project on Tenth Avenue near Main Street.
Concerns came from members of the Northern Edge Sporting Association (NESA), who operate the Smithers Gymnastics Hall on the same lot.
They felt their concerns weren’t addressed in the traffic safety plan.
“We have been advocating for functionality, safety, a cohesive long-term site flow for the past two years and have attempted to create solutions to meet both the needs of Dze L’ Kant and NESA,” said Lara Collingwood, Executive Director.
She continued, saying the current traffic safety plan does not meet the needs of NESA.
Director of Development Services Mark Allen explained, “The traffic safety plan is not actually a requirement for the building permit itself, but the building inspector and the town as the owner are required to ensure the safe use of the property and for the neighbouring tenant both at the start of and throughout construction.”
The concerns around pedestrian safety were later re-expressed by council members.
“I am concerned about the concern that was expressed tonight about safety,” said Councillor John Buikema.
“To me, it’s kind of important that staff convince me those issues will be solvable because I think NESA has some legitimate concerns about traffic flow.”
“I think it’s a good project, again, there’s the concern about co-operation on the site,” said Councillor Calvin Elliott.
A vote to approve the permit went un-opposed.
Construction on the new development was scheduled for 2023 but delayed due to the “contaminated status of the site”.