Millar Avenue businesses oppose city plan for shared-use sidewalks

Millar Avenue could look very different in the coming years with the city planning to make a series of changes to the street. Keenan Sorokan reports.

The Millar Avenue transformation is getting a second look after the introduction of pedestrian and cycling infrastructure left business owners with some questions and lingering concerns.

City administration recommended adding 4.2 kilometres of pathways for pedestrians and cyclists on both sides of Millar Avenue from 43rd Street to Marquis Drive, but on Tuesday the city’s transportation committee ultimately decided to defer any decision until staff can meet with affected businesses and explore solutions.

“We have to be careful not to kill the golden goose here, and we have to take into account that in an industrial area most people take trucks to work instead of a 10-speed [bicycle], because they have to,” Donauer said of one of the city’s largest employment areas and economic drivers of the city.

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Much of the conversation around the $8.5 million project surrounded the potential impact on businesses and how little their concerns were reflected in the transportation department’s recommendation.

Jackie Roach has worked at Bourbon Barbershop on Millar Ave for eight years. She said she’s seen many close calls involving pedestrians and vehicles since there are no sidewalks, but there are plenty of fast-moving vehicles.

“If you don’t have a car, you’re kind of hooped,” she said. “Especially in the winter. With the snow piles, it’s impassable. I’ve seen people walk in traffic … so having some kind of a walkway would be nice."

Pathways could be different dependent on the section of Millar Ave.

Some parts allowed for identical shared use pathways on both sides, smaller paths on one side with minimal construction or disruption, however administration preferred building paths on both sides of the street.

“There’s very little activity on this road because we feel, there is no place to walk unless you’re cutting through parking lots, and it also would be very uncomfortable to ride your bike on Millar with those four lanes,” said Jay Magus, the city’s director of transportation.

The barbershop and other businesses along the planned stretch utilize what the city calls the “legal right-of-way” for parking or even front entrances. This land on the business side of the curb ranges from 20 metres to 40 metres in width on parts of Millar Avenue. Some businesses are built right on the end of the property line while many others have built parking lots in what is technically city-owned land.

“We can do this to these businesses. We can,” Donauer said during Tuesday’s meeting. “My question is, should we?”

Renderings shown during the meeting presented examples where some businesses would lose most of their parking, while others would lose a few stalls.

“I hope these series of images highlights the conflict of the private business, using the public space,” Magus said.

During the committee meeting, the city said it is entitled to reclaim the land for its own uses if it wants to do so, but it’s possible many businesses – some which have been there for over 30 years – did not know they were using city land for their own operations.

“I’m hearing comments like this is kind of overkill for what we ask for or overengineering. And when I look at the amount of space in that existing right of way, I’m compelled to have sympathy with that,” Donauer said.

Another point of contention from Donauer was that the engagement listed in the city’s report was not reflective of the meeting he attended or the comments submitted. He said many people approached him upset with the project’s scope.

“It was clear that every attendee present shared the same view: this proposal should not be adopted,” Adam Bokshowan of Recreation Supply wrote to the committee about a public feedback meeting he attended last year.

“Residents and business owners alike voiced strong concerns about the significant negative impacts this project would have on businesses along Millar Avenue — particularly through the loss of customer parking and the resulting reduction in their ability to serve customers effectively.”

City staff will hold another round of talks with affected businesses before bringing the project back to the transportation committee.