Multi-faceted construction project underway in downtown Lethbridge – Lethbridge | 24CA News
Efforts to revitalize downtown Lethbridge now embrace one other main development undertaking.
The first section will see a water important renewal, new bike lanes and pavement rehabilitation.
City of Lethbridge’s senior transportation undertaking administrator Bryce Dudley shared that the enhancements will happen over the course of a number of weeks.
“We’re going to be improving issues with the gutter drainage and broken gutters, brand new asphalt surface over the whole project boundary and we’re going to be improving many of the existing accessibility ramps along the way,” mentioned Dudley.
Along with the enhancements, the town will erect its first-ever protected biking lanes.
The bike lanes will go up alongside Fourth Avenue South and run west to Stafford Drive South and Seventh Street South between Third and Seventh Avenue.
A map of the protected bike lanes to go alongside Fourth Avenue South and run west to Stafford Drive South and Seventh Street South between Third and Seventh Avenue.
City of Lethbridge
Those roads with new biking paths shall be lowered from 4 to 2 lanes, with some parking stalls additionally set to be misplaced.
That news got here as a little bit of a shock to some close by business house owners who say there was no recourse on the choice so as to add the bike lanes or heads-up about parking disruptions throughout a busy buying season.
John Pyska of Big John’s Books on Seventh Street shared that he obtained little discover in regards to the undertaking.
“They sent me an email two weeks before they were going to do it and no one at City Hall said anything,” defined Pyska. “I talked to most of the business here, not one person wanted this.”
He went on to say that this shall be devastating for his business and claimed that they won’t make it by way of the winter due to this development.
David Clark, proprietor of Doug’s Sports, shared the identical sentiments saying he solely came upon in regards to the undertaking by way of a good friend bidding on the job.
“We had no recourse on it really,” he mentioned. “We understand the water main has to be replaced, it’s almost 100 years old.”
Clark went on, “I’m not for the bike path either. Just because it takes out two lanes of traffic on this street and to take all this prime parking space and traffic space isn’t fair to us, but they said you can’t do anything about it.”
The metropolis says the undertaking has been within the works since 2020, with officers from each the town and the Downtown BRZ having conferences with business house owners.
In an e mail to Global News, the City of Lethbridge shared that ultimate notices have been mailed in July in regards to the timing of the undertaking.
Sarah Aimes with the Downtown BRZ calls the development proactive and needed however understands the frustrations felt by companies.
“We’ll be really glad when it’s over, and that’s completely understandable right. There’s a little bit of concern about disruption to businesses.”
City officers shared that in development, sidewalks will stay open to advertise foot visitors of those companies and various parking is ready to be checked out to assist these which are impacted by highway closures.
When requested Wednesday, the town says it’s nonetheless ready for a grant to be finalized earlier than confirming the full estimated value for the work.
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