City backs Pottinger Street petitioners as council changes its plans

At a recent meeting, Kawartha Lakes council voted unanimously to support a petition from residents inhabiting the south side of Pottinger Street between Albert and Adelaide Street who oppose the city installing sidewalks on their lots.

The construction is part of the ongoing municipal infrastructure upgrade that began in early spring.

Councillor Mark Doble, who represents Ward 5 and the people who live on Pottinger Street, has been deeply involved in this issue ever since local residents presented a petition to council at the end of April. In the petition they stated their opposition to the city plan to extend sidewalks along both sides of the street beginning at Victoria Park North and stretching to Parkview Public School.

“The decision made by council to not build the sidewalks on the south side of the street from Albert to Adelaide Street is final,” Doble told Kawartha Lakes Weekly in a telephone interview. “We were responding to a report from the engineering department that was responding to the (resident) petition presented in April.”

Doble said that the engineering department gave council options, and had a definite preferred choice (that may have included sidewalks along the whole street), but that Director Juan Rojas and his staff are “fine with the decision” made at council to nix the sidewalks on the south side of the street between Albert and Adelaide.

“I have had conversations with the folks on Pottinger,” Doble said, “and (they) are happy and relieved. I have been meeting with homeowners since April and it was clear that the sidewalks would have really impacted the way that they used their property.”

Doble believes that the primary concern of improved safety for parents dropping off their children and students walking back and forth from Parkview Public School has been addressed well by other changes the city plans to make at the school end of Pottinger Street.

When asked if the Trillium Lakelands District School Board, which had been lobbying for the additional sidewalks that some residents opposed, was happy with the city’s decision Doble said he had not heard from any specific board representative. The councillor said he believes that the changes approved by the city that will see more sidewalks and potentially improved parking at the top of Pottinger closest to Parkview, “respects the concerns that they (the school board) have expressed.”

Doble hopes that everyone on Pottinger Street who took the time to address council knows that they were listened to.

“We (are) not dismissive of anyone who takes the time to thoughtfully address council.”

Doble said that the deputations against the sidewalk extensions were so persuasive that two councillors, who were unsure of how they were going to vote initially, decided to support the anti-sidewalk petitioners after listening to the multiple presentations.

“I feel strongly that we made the right decision,” Doble said.

He estimated that the elimination of the one strip of sidewalk on Pottinger will reduce the cost of the current infrastructure work underway by about $35,000.