CALLANDER, Ont. — Prepare for Swale Street’s upgrade this summer, Callander.
The wheels are in motion for a complete reconstruction of Swale Street, from Main Street to Callander Bay Drive. Council voted to award the engineering contract to Tulloch Engineers, which will provide complete engineering design and drafting services.
Callander has allocated $50,168 for the service, tax included. The municipality has also set aside an additional contingency fund of $5,000 if the need arises.
The Reconstruction of Swale Street has a line in the 2024 capital budget, with $1,452,450 allocated for the project. The work includes fully reconstructing the existing roadway. A new concrete sidewalk will hedge the south side of the street.
While the road is torn up, the town is also laying water and sewer pipes to the vacant lands on the north side of the street, across from the Community Centre. The street “will also be realigned slightly,” a report to council explained, “to remove unnecessary bends and to improve visibility.”
Replacing the water and sewer lines requires approvals from the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks, and the designs must be certified by a professional engineer.
Why lay pipes to the vacant land? The municipality is considering relocating the Operations Department and the Firehall, and the property across from the Community Centre could be an option. However, this is planning for what may be in a distant future.
“Even if this location is not successful,” staff noted in their report to council, “this lot being completely serviced will increase its value if it were to be declared surplus in the future and sold for development.”
The engineering work will begin soon, as the town wants to have it completed by June so it can issue a tender for the road work soon after. If all goes well, you should be driving on a new Swale Street this fall.
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
