Hillier thanks Downtown Improvement group for extending sidewalks

By Craig Westcott/September 16, 2022

The completion of more sidewalks in CBS is being welcomed by many, but raising questions for some, councillor-at-large Rex Hillier acknowledged last week. 

Pointing to the latest installations, from Talc Cove Road to Anchorage Road in Long Pond, Hillier allowed the work slowed traffic for a few days, but when it was finished the town had the benefit of a “beautiful new sidewalk running along the southside of Route 60.”

That means, Hillier pointed out, the town now has sidewalks on both sides of the road all the way from Manuels Bridge to Anchorage Road.

“Obviously it makes a difference in terms of safety and tidiness along that strip,” Hillier said. “Some people are asking why that section has sidewalks on both sides of Route 60 when there are areas of the town where no sidewalk exists at all. The answer is the new sidewalks that are being put in, are actually being put in by the business community in that area – the Downtown CBS Business Association. They collect an extra 10 per cent on what they pay to the Town for taxes and use that for improving the area of the downtown. And this is just one of their projects. I want to thank them for the work that they do and congratulate them on finishing this particular project.”

Mayor Darrin Bent seconded Hillier’s comments, noting the sidewalk project initially began near Manuels River with the concrete spreading westward along Route 60. “They’ve filled in quite a bit of that and it’s really good to see on that side of the road for those businesses,” he added.

Ward 4 councillor Melissa Hardy also had praise for sidewalks, only in this case it was for the Town’s sidewalk program and the extension of concrete alongside the main road near the school zone in Upper Gullies.

“I’ve seen a lot of people using them now, so it’s really good,” she said. “We are within a 1.6 km to the school (zone), so it’s very important that we can get the families and their kids to school safely on the side of the road.”