Kensington streetscape improvements get underway this week

Work is starting this weekto give a popular community in Calgary's northwest a freshand safer look.

The city is spending $4.5 million this year to revitalize the two main streets in Kensington. The project starts this week on the east side of 10th Street between Memorial Drive and SecondAvenue N.W.

Uneven paving stones installed decades ago will be replaced bysmoother concrete slabs. New trees and planters will replace old or dying ones.

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New benches and bike racks will be installed.As well, LED street lights will be addedand decorative pedestrian lighting will eliminate dark spots on the streets for those on foot.

Money from parking surplus

Jessica Bell with the city's road departmentsaidsome of the street infrastructure onKensingtonRoad and on 10th Streetis getting "a little old"so it's time for a refresh.

"Some of the sidewalks have started to heave and it's creating trip hazards. So we're trying to make the public realm in that area, which is widely used by pedestrians, a little bit safer and more accessible," she said.

The money, which comes from a surplus at the Calgary Parking Authority, willhelp give the area more of a uniformlook stop at the corner of KensingtonRoad and 10A Street and you can spot seven different kinds of street lights.

Seven years in the making

The head of the Kensington Business Revitalization Zone (BRZ) is excited about the changes coming to the neighbourhood.

Annie MacInnisand her group have been working on the project with the city for the past seven years.

"It's important that it looks nice down here, that it's clean and that people feel safe. That it's well lit, that you're not tripping and spraining your ankle while you're trying to walk around," said MacInnis.

The city plans to do the work one block at a time to minimize the inconvenience to area businesses. It's expected each block will take two or three weeks to complete.

The entire project is scheduled to be done by the end of October

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