The design phase will soon begin for a major renovation project at North Bay's downtown transit hub.
During its regular meeting, Tuesday, North Bay City Council awarded a $145,510 contract to Planmac Engineering Inc. for design services related to planned upgrades in and around the Peter Reid Stop at the corner of Oak Street East and Wyld Street. According to the City, the proposal from Planmac scored the highest of the three applicants and provides the best overall value.
The contract covers design work for ongoing upgrades and repairs to the terminal, including the HVAC units, outdoor pathways, pads and shelters, and some interior improvements at the Peter Reid Stop, including the public washrooms.
See original story: Safer public washrooms a focus for transit terminal makeover
Communications Office Gord Young tells BayToday once the design work is completed, the construction will be staged in multiple phases this year and next. "The washroom-related work is expected to be tendered in the fall with construction to follow later in the year," adds Young.
The Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) Transit Stream will cover approximately 73.33 per cent of eligible costs. Coun. Chris Mayne, the chair of Council's infrastructure and operations committee noted, "If we'd set off this work to be done in a few more years we might otherwise have to pay for it completely out of our municipal budget."
The City of North Bay has been approved for up nearly $8.3 million in combined federal and provincial funds to support 10 transit-related projects:
- transit terminal improvements;
- transit terminal rehabilitation;
- implementation of transit on-demand service;
- bicycle racks and related storage areas;
- facility improvements to the fleet garage and bus barn;
- improvements to specialized transit buses (installation of automated vehicle location system and security cameras);
- new bus shelters, concrete pads and digital signage at bus stops;
- purchase of additional sidewalk trackless snow plow;
- construction of sidewalks and stormwater improvements; and
- fleet garage and bus barn upgrades (central vacuum system and garage doors).
Coun. Dave Mendicino noted the transit project is good news for the downtown core with the reconstruction of Main Street on the horizon and ongoing investments and improvements at the North Bay waterfront.
The City says the focus of the transit project will be to "optimize the interior as well as the exterior of the facility to improve overall safety, security and passenger comfort as well as enhancing the pedestrian and age-friendly environment to increase the use of local transit services."
