Designated truck route tops agenda at Thunder Bay city council

A decision five years in the making could finally be put to bed Monday night, as city councillors in Thunder Bay, Ont., could approve the designated truck route (DTR).

• Thunder Bay city council approves designated truck route
• Final vote on designated truck route in Thunder Bay, Ont., delayed

The DTR would force transports to use the Thunder Bay Expressway and Highway 11/17 to travel through the city, taking trucks off of Highway 102 and West Arthur Street.

City councillorsvoted on January 14 to accept the plan to move transports to the DTR - and also move local traffic onto specific routes - but it was a close vote, 7-6.

When the motion was first passed, one councillor said it was a chance to force transports onto provincially maintained roads, while also creating safer streets.

The Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce will speak to the DTR - again - after saying its members still have concerns about the impact on local deliveries.

Council has re-scheduled the ratification of the DTR by-law, to ensure all members of council are present to vote on the matter.

Planning matters

City councillors are also slated to approve a number of planning issues, as well as receive an update on the number of building lots in the city.

Planning approvals are expected for three apartment buildings, with 40 units each, along with a 10,000 square foot commercial building which will include a drugstore. That proposal is slated for the intersection of Golf Links Road and Riviera Drive.

Other planning matters include an additional 24 condominium units at the corner of Beverly Street and Balmoral, as well as nine lots at a subdivision on 15th Sideroad.

Council will also receive a report from administration on building lot inventory. 110 homes were built in Thunder Bay in 2018, with nearly a quarter of them as 'infill' lots.

The planning department notes there are 142lots in inventory in subdivisions, although 47 of those, in the Mount Forest subdivision are currently not available.

There is a 16 year supply of building lots available in the draft plan phase, with many of those 823 lots in the Parkdale subdivision. Over 1200 apartment units are also in the planning phase.

Other items

Council is also slated to approve awarding a contract to JMLEngineering for $325,000 for work on the Boulevard Lake Dam. The sole-source contract is being recommended because the company has already done a number of studies on the dam - which is slated to have major work done to it this summer.

Another item is the revision of a by-law written in 1972 on parks and open spaces, which requires an update. The by-law will provide new ways for the city to enforce noise and loitering complaints in parks, as well as dumping of garbage. The by-law has had some updates which are site specific to Prince Arthur's Landing.

Council will also receive the heads-up about a non-business meeting slated for Thursday from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. for councillors. They will discuss the proposed indoor turf facility, for which support for the project will be put to a vote at the June 24 meeting.