Virgil road work to be finished by end of year

Road construction in Virgil is on budget and on schedule, which the region says means the end of the year for “substantial completion,” or 98 per cent of the project finished.

Most of what remains to be completed is landscaping, and some of the conversion of overhead hydro, Bell and Cogeco wiring to underground, says project manager Mike Wilson. The wiring and poles still have to be removed.

The landscaping includes parkettes at Four Mile Creek Road, Field Road and both sides of Line 1, Wilson said, and are all the same concept, but slightly different to accommodate the space available — the landscaped areas at Field Road and Line 1 will be smaller.

The large limestone rocks are already installed at the corner of Four Mile Creek Road, and still to come are planting areas, benches, garbage receptacles, some coloured concrete surfaces and light bollards, which direct the light downwards for pedestrians.

The Field Road parkette will be at the corner in front of Cornerstone Church.

The town made a financial contribution of $1.4 million toward the landscaping, and, as Wilson pointed out, was included in design decisions in the early days of the project.

Also still to be planted are trees, as well as some sod, mostly in front of businesses where there was grass before the road work began.

Sidewalks, curbs and banding, the grey strip between them, is in place.

“Our intention is to install vegetation this year, although it may be in a dormant stage,” said Wilson.

If there is any work to be carried over into next year, it might be the removal of the poles, and completing the landscaping around them, he said.

The road work went well, Wilson said, with no major surprises, “although some of the underground work was challenging.”

And although traffic was not a surprise, it was also a challenge to keep traffic flowing through the area.

“When municipalities or regions begin doing road construction, there are always challenges trying to balance getting the work done faster with keeping roads open.”

He pointed out that as promised, Niagara Stone Road stayed open with one or two lanes throughout the road work. “Congestion is always a byproduct of what we do,” said Wilson, “but it was mitigated by keeping both sides open.”

Businesses were accessible throughout, he added, and although some business owners noted a drop in business, “the contractor has to get the job done.”

There were some changes made to the construction schedule to accommodate local events — road work was essentially stopped from the Thursday before the Virgil Stampede, with some temporary work done to make it easier and safer for pedestrians to navigate their way to the event, and construction did not resume until the Tuesday after the stampede, Wilson said.                          

Once the project is completed, “it will be a very nice stretch of road, with bicycle and pedestrian access improved. It will be lighter, brighter, safer and better able to move traffic through it safely as well.”