Smithers Council awarded the Princess Street Reconstruction and Main Street Multi-use Path projects to West Horizon Contracting during tonight’s (Tuesday) meeting.
The Princess Street project includes a reworking of the roadway and the addition of a new multi-use path on the north side of the street.
Originally, the path was planned for the south side of the roadway where the current sidewalk exists but was changed due to drainage issues on that side of the road.
“It’s more challenging on the south side of the street especially between 13th and 16th Avenue and the plan is to remove the existing sidewalk because the boulevard needs to be re-sloped to fit the new street construction,” said Mark Allen, Director of Development Services.
Councilor Genevieve Paterson said having the path run on the north side made sense as that is where Yorke-Hardy Park sits.
Councilor John Buikema commented on the current sidewalk conditions along Princess Street.
“The existing sidewalk has got to be some of the worst sidewalks in this entire town,” he said.
With the Main Street project, a new multi-use path will be installed from 10th Avenue to Highway 16 to connect downtown with the Cycle 16 Connector Trail.
Councilor Frank Wray raised concerns about the pathway and increased cycling traffic at the 10th Avenue intersection wondering if any plans were in place to address the issue.
“Staff are looking at the rapid flashing beacons that we installed at King Street and Second Avenue for the Cycle 16 connector project at 16th Avenue and Fulton Avenue and are considering it at the Main Street crosswalk,” said Allen.
The contract for both projects is just over $2 million.
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