Halifax Urban Greenway

[Dmajackson]

Yet another talking to myself thread....hmmm....

Seriously though i contacted the HUGA about why they didn't build this summer and they said they were completely in the dark about their own project due to the government and its stranges processes. He said the right-of-way purchasing with CN is ongoing as far as he knows, the provincial money for this expires next year but the main holdback is the petition from the local residents file back in the Winter.

[Spitfire75]

Doesn't this project directly conflict with the paving the railcut idea?

[reddog794]

I'm not so sure, the greenway would be above it, wouldn't it? What about just building over the rail cut, as a tunnel. You would have enough room to make it a major bicycle route, taking a page from Bogotá.

[Takeo]

Originally Posted by Bedford_DJ

...the main holdback is the petition from the local residents file back in the Winter.

Yah. The rich southenders are convinced the path will be overflowing with crackheads and delinquents.

[Dmajackson]

Originally Posted by Takeo

Yah. The rich southenders are convinced the path will be overflowing with crackheads and delinquents.

I wonder which of those options south-enders consider students as....

I've seen many people use the make-shift path along the route and well i hate to stereotype but judging by what they were wearing i would guess many were "rich-south-enders"

Hopefully it goes through. Its nice to know its not being held back by money at least. Especially seeing that it could get funding from all levels of government and the Trans Canada Trail Association.

[Takeo]

Originally Posted by Bedford_DJ

I've seen many people use the make-shift path along the route and well i hate to stereotype but judging by what they were wearing i would guess many were "rich-south-enders"

Well, no one likes a stereotype, and what does "rich" mean exactly... but if you own a house that backs on the railway cut, you're probably doing ok. I know a couple of people with homes that back onto the railway cut and they are both vehemently opposed to the trial.

Anyway, I hope it happens. They've been working on it for years.

[Jonovision]

They had the same opposition when the Dartmouth Harbourfront Trail was proposed. People were worried that teenage delinquents would be drinking and doing drugs on the path in their back yards. Two years now since it's been open and I haven't heard of anything like that happening. Not too mention I've walked the path as late as 1am and there are never really any people the path after dark.

[hfx_chris]

Originally Posted by reddog794

I'm not so sure, the greenway would be above it, wouldn't it? What about just building over the rail cut, as a tunnel. You would have enough room to make it a major bicycle route, taking a page from Bogotá.

You really think that's likely to happen around here?

Originally Posted by Takeo

Yah. The rich southenders are convinced the path will be overflowing with crackheads and delinquents.

It already is... it's embarrassing every time I'm on the train through there, this is the beautiful view of Halifax as you come into downtown, homeless people sleeping under trash under the bridges, garbage and shopping carts strewn everywhere... it's a complete mess, and very disgusting...

[Dmajackson]

Originally Posted by hfx_chris

You really think that's likely to happen around here?

In realistic terms NO. But that would be an ideal solution IMO. The if it was infilled or covered over it would be wide enough for a nice path, bicycling facility, and probably a bus route of some sort.

CN is certainly turning out to be a tough compny to make deals with. They are commonly opposed to any trails, crossings, or anything that would be on their lands. A good example is Bedford in the whole town we have 4 legal rail crossings becuase of CN's refusal for more safer routes. Of course they are dozens of illegal crossings but I'm sure they know about them.

Back to this though. I can;t see why CN would oppose this trail. Its above their tracks and well I can't think of anything that CN could use the land for. Its much too steep for anything train related and its very narrow anyways. One thing i can see them against is the truckway but well there are obvious reasons behind that.

Just as a side note I've heard CN isn't very keen on the Bedford Basin trail either...

[hfx_chris]

Originally Posted by Bedford_DJ

CN is certainly turning out to be a tough compny to make deals with. They are commonly opposed to any trails, crossings, or anything that would be on their lands.

For good reason too. Something tells me it would be a tremendous liability to have either walking/bicycling trails, or a roadway running parallel to an active rail line in such closed quarters...

Back to this though. I can;t see why CN would oppose this trail. Its above their tracks...

Perhaps CN also realizes this idea of filling in the cut and putting a trail on top is unlikely to happen...

[Dmajackson]

Originally Posted by hfx_chris

For good reason too. Something tells me it would be a tremendous liability to have either walking/bicycling trails, or a roadway running parallel to an active rail line in such closed quarters...


Perhaps CN also realizes this idea of filling in the cut and putting a trail on top is unlikely to happen...

Well while it is in closed corners there is still a significant space between the trail and the cliff in some areas.

Well for now we should start with the Greenway idea since it doesnt involve infilling or anything that would affect CN's company service wise.

[hfx_chris]

In some areas yes, in others it gets pretty tight...

[Dmajackson]

Council quietly approved this trail tonight by ignoring the petition signed by many local residents back in the winter-time. So according to my emails with Mark Pourier this was one of the last hurdles to getting the trail u/c. The other i think was land ownership but i dont know how that is progressing...

[Dmajackson]

Herald article today:

Residents favour narrower trails

By AMY PUGSLEY FRASER City Hall Reporter
Thu. Nov 20 - 4:47 AM
South-end homeowners have changed their minds about a paved trail running above the railway line in their neighbourhood, says the area councillor.

Earlier this year, people living around Beaufort Avenue submitted a 260-name petition to city hall asking for changes to the Beaufort Trail.

They wanted the trail, which will wind from South Street to Roxton Road in the city right-of-way, to be topped with crusher dust instead of pavement.

Their petition outlined concerns that the green space would be lost to a wide swath of asphalt.

But Coun. Sue Uteck (Northwest Arm-South End) told her council colleagues at a meeting this week that city staff have worked with the community and come to an agreement.

It’s time to get moving on the trail, the first of three active transportation links that will eventually join the Armdale Rotary to Point Pleasant Park.

"We want to go forward with this trail; it’s been 10 years in the making," Ms. Uteck said.

A staff report written for council says that in order to preserve as many trees as possible, the street will be narrowed in places to accommodate more trail space.

In other places along the route, the trail will veer onto CN-owned land and its width will be reduced to save trees.

As a result of the changes, which involved a proposed 4.5-metre-wide cut being reduced to three and 3.5 metres, many people asked that their names be deleted from the petition, Ms. Uteck said.

National trail guidelines say routes must be paved to accommodate wheelchairs, bikes, in-line skates and skateboards.

The municipality might have lost the $600,000 promised to the project by the province and Ottawa if the standards weren’t followed.

"The trail needs to be constructed to . . . standards of at least 3.5 metres in width and finished with asphalt," says a staff report.

The city’s manager of real property planning said there was talk at one point of putting the trail down in the rail cut.

"But it would be problematic in terms of getting people in and out of the cut — and costly," Peter Bigelow told council.

Instead, he said, the trail will be located on the "aprons" of the railway cut, allowing easy access.

That’s a good idea, said Coun. Jennifer Watts (Connaught-Quinpool), adding that she would like to see the trail developed further into her district.

[Dmajackson]

I've received an email from Mark Poirier (at bottom of page) and the map on HUGA's website has been redrawn to meet the residents concerns.


At its first post-election meeting on November 18th, the new HRM Council unanimously accepted the staff report responding to the anti-Greenway trail petition submitted to Council on April 15, 2008. They thus accepted the following recommendation:



“It is recommended that Halifax Regional Council support the construction of the Beaufort Street (sic), Phase 1, AT Trail as designed by HRM staff and described within. The trail will implement the HRM AT Master Plan Facility and Planning Guidelines and staff recommendations regarding width and surface finish.”



The staff report is available at:



http://www.halifaxurbangreenway.org/...n_petition.pdf



Two modifications to the Active Transportation (AT) or multi-use trail resulted from the neighbourhood consultation that followed upon the petition: first, the trail was narrowed to 3.5 metres wherever it follows the existing sidewalk allowance; second, a number of tree plantings have been added. Revised design plans are available at:



http://www.halifaxurbangreenway.org/maps.html





Mark Poirier,

President,

Halifax Urban Greenway Association

[Dmajackson]

Email from Mr. Porier today;

David,

Thank you for your inquiry on what is happening with the Greenway.

There actually has been progress. HRM's land purchase negotiations with CN are in the final stages. Tender documents have been prepared and are being reviewed among HRM Departments. Unfortunately, all this has been internal within HRM only.

HUGA still expects to see construction this year, if for no other reason than that the federal-provincial funding of $600,000 has to be spent by April 2010.


Mark Poirier,
President,
Halifax Urban Greenway Association

[Dmajackson]

An Invitation to Tender has gone out for the Beaufort Avenue section of the Halifax Urban Greenway.

The HRM ad was posted in the Halifax Chronicle-Herald, Saturday, August 8, 2009, p. F10. The tender number is 09-169.

The project description is “Halifax Urban Greenway (HUGA) Trail - Phase 1 Beaufort Avenue”

The closing date is 2 p.m. local time, September 1, 2009.

The CN lands along the rail cut have not yet been acquired. As a result, this tender applies only to the multi-use trail between South Street and Marlborough Woods located on the sidewalk allowance portion of the site, plus the widening of that sidewalk allowance between South Street and Oakland Road .

The portion of the multi-purpose trail veering away from the sidewalk allowance towards the edge of the rail cut between Regina Terrace and Inglis Street , plus the nature footpath, will be constructed in a subsequent project.

Mark Poirier,

President,

Halifax Urban Greenway Association

[Dmajackson]

The tender is going to be approved tomorrow night at council and construction is expected to begin late this month.

[Dmajackson]

The tender was awarded to Ocean Ltd and is expected to begin construct almost immediately.

The trail part is expected to be completed by this winter.

[alps]

I know this is unlikely, expensive, and of questionable usefulness, but I have an odd desire to see the rail cut used to complete Highway 111 as an orbital road.

Anyway, good news that they're making some progress