During their regular meeting July 14, Sylvan Lake councillors:
● held a public hearing on the closure of 48h Street between 48th and 49th Avenues to allow for construction of the multiplex redevelopment.
Resident Dave Camac, represented by his son, indicated closure of the road would not be in his best interests from the standpoint of future development.
A road closure application will now be submitted to Alberta Transportation along with concerns voiced at the hearing for a decision before council can deal with second and third reading of a bylaw to close the road.
● approved first reading of a bylaw to designate urban reserve in Beacon Hill to public facility district. Rezoning will facilitate development of a school by Chinook’s Edge School Division. The area is bounded on the south by Beacon Hill Drive, on the west by Brookstone Drive and on the north by houses on Bowman Circle. A public hearing will be held August 11.
● directed staff to proceed with design and tendering for Lakeshore Drive Phase 5 at an amount not to exceed the approved budget of $1.9 million excluding GST.
Work between 50 and 52 streets will allow for continuous pedestrian movement on the north side of Lakeshore Drive and also include upgrading existing sidewalks on the south side of Lakeshore Drive at select locations, upgrading the crosswalks at 50th Street and Lakeshore Drive intersection and performing road rehabilitation in the area. Placement of a plaza feature and realignment of the existing sidewalk at the 50th Street connection from Lakeshore Drive to the waterfront is also planned.
● awarded a contract for consulting services required for restoration of a wetland biofilter on Golf Course Creek at the outlet to Marina Bay to Applied Aquatic Research Ltd. of Calgary for the estimated amount of $26,210 excluding GST.
The construction phase of the project will require budget approval in 2015.
● deferred a decision on the most recent landscape design concept for the Ryders Ridge-Vistas park to their next meeting Aug. 11 so they can go for a walk-about in the area.
Councillors were happy with the concept which protected trees in the area but formalized some of the trail connections.
● were jolted to life, after three and a half hours of meeting, when Councillor Graham Parsons made a motion to investigate renaming Highway 11A from Highway 2 through to Benalto as Lakeshore Drive. During subsequent discussion the motion was amended to just deal with 33rd Street within town boundaries from Highway 20 west to where it flows into Lakeshore Drive.
Parsons requested Alberta Transportation be approached about putting ‘to Lakeshore Drive’ on signs coming off of Highway 2 at 11A and coming off Highway 11 just east of Benalto.
The rationale, he explained was that when going to Edmonton there’s a sign that says Pigeon Lake north shore. “It makes you think there’s really something there.”