By Adam Prudhomme
Staff Reporter
A large contingent of homeowners packed into Greater Napanee council chambers on Tuesday to express their concerns over an access road for a proposed development near Reid Street, south of Slash Road and north of Dundas Street West.
Their concern with the project proposed by Red Tree Development, lays not with the 48 townhouse units, five single detached unit or community centre, but rather the fact that Reid Street and Slash Road would be the access road for construction trucks. According to a petition presented to council, homeowners in that area feel those roads wouldn’t support large trucks and expressed concerns over the increased traffic in their neighbourhood. Instead they’d rather County Road 2 were used as the access route, though Lennox and Addington County has stated it would like to avoid that amount of traffic flowing onto the highway.
“I echo the concerns of the folks that are here,” said Councillor Roger Cole, who also lives near Slash Road. “It’s going to be a wonderful development, there’s no question in my mind. I think we have to do everything we can to make certain it goes forward, but I am concerned about the traffic.”
Cole also added the town could explore the installation of more sidewalks in the area to help keep pedestrians safe.
“I have lived on Slash Road and I thoroughly agree with the people who signed this petition,” said Councillor Carol Harvey. “Neither Reid nor Slash Road can accommodate that much traffic. It’s not wide enough at 21.5 feet.”
Deputy-Mayor Marg Isbester acknowledged the importance of the proposed development but wanted to gather more information.
“This is certainly a development that is needed, I mean the housing shortage is absolutely wicked,” said Isbester. “But that doesn’t mean we should bypass everything else to make everyone safe and happy. I do think that if we could with the traffic study, if it would include the wear and tear on the road and the condition, if we could get that information it might make people a little more comfortable.”
She also added support for my sidewalks in the area as well.
“I’m a little disappointed,” said Mayor Gord Schermerhorn. “Not in you people coming here this evening, but last council meeting we had people get up and say ‘Napanee is not bringing in enough (business), you’re going to have keep putting our taxes up and up.’ And now there’s someone who wants do a development and we’re going to work with them. Whether it’s Reid Street or (County Road) 2, we’re going to work through this somehow, someway.”
Schemerhorn also noted Tuesday’s meeting was just an opportunity for council to hear the public’s concerns and a second meeting on the matter is expected to take place sometime next month.