Proposed First Street Plan
Meets With
Council Opposition
First Street in Collingwood is in drastic need for an upgrade, however Collingwood Council wasn't thrilled with a plan put forth on Monday, May 12th.
Traffic and infrastructure issues continue to be front-and-centre at the Collingwood Council table. On Monday, May 12th, Collus Executive Director Ed Houghton presented a proposed new look for an updated First Street. The plan called for the widening of First Street from four lanes to five lanes from Hurontario Street to High Street. This proposal didn't sit well with some councilors including councilor Kathy Jeffery. Councilor Jeffery was concerned with the safety of pedestrians trying to cross five lanes of traffic on a busy roadway. Jeffery did like the idea of a centre median at traffic lights, saying that this would give pedestrians a safe place to stand until it was safe to finish crossing the street. Jeffery has stated that a public meeting is necessary to gather input from Collingwood residents. The plan put forth to council on Monday night also included wider sidewalks on both the north and south side of First Street and landscaping. Councilor Norm Sandberg was also unhappy with the proposed five lane design. One point put forth suggested a three lane roadway including a turning lane. There is a feeling that the upcoming widening of the Poplar Sideroad will help move traffic away from First Street for those people who presently use the roadway to drive through town. A date hasn't been set for a proposed public meeting.
Recently, it was announced that provincial funding assistance would be made available to improve roadways used as bypasses to Collingwood and Stayner. The provincial government has agreed to provide 7.3 million dollars to help improve the Popular Sideroad between the 10th Line and Highway 26.