Charlottetown identifies key priorities ahead of 2020-21 construction season

Charlottetown's department of public works has identified a number of potential projects ahead of next year's construction season.

The wish list is comprised of projects flagged by residents, city councillors and the department itself.  

"These are a number of projects that we have identified that we think either need some type of upgrade or complete reconstruction to help improve some of the things that public works does for the city," said Scott Adams, Charlottetown's manager of public works.

While a project may have been included on the department's list, Adams said, that doesn't necessarily mean it will move forward. 

Ahead of capital budget

The list will be referred to as city council begins discussions on the capital budget, he said. 

"At the end of the day what the council sets as our budget is what we will go with." 

One of the potential projects on the list is an upgrade to Ken's Corner, located at Euston Street and Longworth Avenue, he said.

"This has been … brought up numerous times and so we'd like to go out and have an engineering consultant look at it and provide us some options on what we can do to improve how traffic flows through this intersection," Adams said.

"We would hope to be able to begin construction next summer."

Safety improvements

Public works has also included some safety-related improvements at a couple of pedestrian crosswalks in Charlottetown on the list. 

"There's been some concern at a few crosswalks around the city," he said.

We will discuss with council what we recommend, and we'll see where the budget ends.— Scott Adams, manager, public works

Adams said the crosswalk in the University Avenue and Euston Street area, which currently does not have a signal light, is of particular concern. 

"There is a ... overhead cross signal but there have been some near misses and a few accidents where pedestrians have been hit by vehicles," he said. 

"So it's a concern for us and the police have also brought this as a concern to public works, looking for options to improve this crossing as well as the crossing at Longworth Avenue where the trail crosses."

Design and planning

In total, Adams said, the department has included seven items on the wish list. He said it isn't likely construction will begin for all of the items over the next year, but hopes that the design and planning processes can begin. 

Adams said the department has also recommended the reconstruction of Pond Street, stretching from Queen Street to University Avenue. 

"We want to better define that right of way, install sidewalks, install curb and gutter — try to clean that area up and make it safer for everyone," he said.

Improvements to Garfield Street, from Kensington Road toward the bypass, have also been included on the list. This would include the installation of a raised, multi-purpose trail and stormwater system. 

The cost associated with the department's list of improvements is yet to be determined, he said. 

"We will discuss with council what we recommend, and we'll see where the budget ends."

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