Phase One of a major road reconstruction project in Belleville is officially complete.
Mayor Mitch Panciuk and other dignitaries cut the ribbon on the first section of the Bell Boulevard rebuild, which starts about 2km west of Sidney Street and sees the road expanded to four lanes, with new traffic lights and turning lanes in front of the Shorelines Casino, sidewalk upgrades and more.
Panciuk says after breaking ground on the project 10 months ago, it’s amazing to see how much work has been done.
“Wow, everything looks so good. The fact we’ve got irrigation for our flowers and green space, we’ve already got the curb cuts in for the future development on the north side of Bell Boulevard. There’s a wow-factor. To say it’s better than I expected is no disrespect to our staff, but I’m really, really happy with this.”
The mayor is comparing the project to others in the city, like the Veterans Memorial Bridge at the east end of Bell Boulevard and the rebuild of Bay Bridge Road, saying those really “raised the bar” for how people look at the city.
He says there will be future plans to add new signage and finishing touches, similar to what’s around those other areas, down the line.
Ontario Environment Minister Jeff Yurek was part of the group that helped cut the ribbon, along with Bay of Quinte MPP Todd Smith and Hastings-Lennox and Addington MPP Daryl Kramp.
Panciuk says the project is three months ahead of schedule and that wouldn’t have been possible without Yurek’s help in waiving an environmental assessment.
“Especially when the original environmental assessment contemplated a four-lane road through here in the 1990s and it was just an example of bureaucratic overreach, where they wanted us to go through a whole process. It would have taken us about 12-to-18 months longer, which would mean we weren’t even starting the project until September of this year.”
Ontario Environment Minister MPP Jeff Yurek speaks at a ribbon cutting ceremony for the first phase of the Bell Boulevard reconstruction project, on August 5, 2020. (Photo: David Foot / Quinte News)
Yurek told the crowd that the environmental assessment exemption was only given after assurances from the city that any environmental issues in the area had been addressed and would be protected moving forward.
He added that the province is looking to standardize the EA process moving forward, to cut down the time it takes to approve them by up to 50%, especially for small projects with minimal environmental impact.
When asked about future development in the area, Panciuk says the phase one completion acts as a giant “welcome sign” for Costco and other businesses looking to set up in that part of the city, even addressing delays in the planned Costco build.
“This is not a question of if they’re going to come, it’s a question of when. The last conversation they apologized and said Costco makes their decisions very slowly, but once they make a decision, they have it. We’ve kept them updated with pictures of the development here and we’re ready to go. This is a big welcome sign for them saying, hey, we’re ready for you.”
He added that COVID-19 has caused a lot of governments and companies to reevaluate how they do things and we’re caught in that and says Costco’s arrival is “all about timing”.
Phase Two of the project, from the Shorelines Casino to the Sidney Street intersection, is expected to be completed by the end of the year, with Phase Three work on Sidney Street likely to be done by next summer.
Panciuk says there are more challenges with the work around Sidney Street because of older underground infrastructure and higher traffic, compared to the stretch of Bell Boulevard that is now complete.
The first phase of the Bell Boulevard reconstruction project, stretching just west of Sidney Street, was completed on August 5, 2020. (Photo: David Foot / Quinte News)
