Sidewalks on Second Avenue in Downtown Squamish are not a priority, at least not for now, according to a senior district official.
Gary Buxton, the general manager of community planning and infrastructure, has responded to concerns of Brad Lee Major, a downtown resident, who has written to the district twice now on the serious gap in infrastructure at the south end of downtown.
“This is a truck route with no side walks or curbs. There are people constantly with kids and strollers dodging cars and trucks,” Major wrote.
He also highlighted the lack of road markers that signal a stop line on Third Ave and Vancouver, and the absence of crosswalk and curbs.
“This is a very dangerous corner,” he wrote.
“I’ve almost been hit a couple of times now. People come north on Third and turn right on Vancouver without stopping. There’s no paint on the road and it’s covered in gravel.”
Buxton said the issue of sidewalks was a far more complex problem as installing sidewalks also means installing catch basins and drains and addressing storm water issues.
“This would need to be a separate capital project on its own and isn’t currently on the priority list for being addressed in 2020. We will however revisit the area and determine if the priority does need to be addressed,” he said.
Major says he realises the sidewalks are a major capital project, but road markings and stop lines on the truck route should be an easy fix.
“It’s basically just painting lines on the road,” he says.