Main Street rejuvenation will take short vacation before excavation

A request from the Board of Directors of Downtown North Bay & Waterfront to delay the Main Street Rejuvenation project until spring 2023 has been granted by North Bay City Council.

Council unanimously agreed, Tuesday, with the Downtown Board's resolution proposing to delay the tendering of the project to this December and calling for the construction of the nearly $6.2-million project to commence in the spring of 2023. 

See related: City asked to push $6.2M Main Street project to 2023 as downtown businesses recover from pandemic

The project involves the reconstruction of Main Street from Cassells Street to Sherbrooke Street and Ferguson Street from Main Street to Oak Street, as outlined in the North Bay Downtown Waterfront Master Plan (DWMP) and was set to go out for tender in April with construction slated to begin in July.

See also: Report: Main Street 'beyond rehabilitation'

The membership of the downtown body expressed its desire for some "consideration to be given to the business community to recover without construction this year."  

Councillors Mac Bain and Dave Mendicino also sit on the Downtown Board and spoke in favour of honouring the request of the downtown merchants to push the project into 2023 and give the membership time to recover from the effects of the pandemic.

Bain noted the City of North Bay has been working closely with the Downtown representatives to lessen the impact of the project on businesses. Mendicino confirmed the board has been involved in the design phase and consultation will continue throughout.

This is a win for downtown business owners "that want a little bit of breathing space," said Bain. "It gives our staff time to consult more and also means this project will move forward and the downtown will be enhanced. With the other investments the City is making, this is going to be what downtown needs."

Mendicino observed downtown merchants sought some "breathing room coming out of the pandemic, rather than closing down streets."

He added, "This Council has provided major investments in the downtown and waterfront for the future and they will just help grow our city."

Downtown North Bay & Waterfront has made it clear it is supportive of the design, refurbishment and construction plan but believes delaying construction to spring 2023 "is the best option for the success of our membership and overall health of Downtown as our businesses have suffered greatly as a result of COVID-19."

The Downtown Board will use the extra time to help business owners prepare for the impact of the multi-year construction timeline by developing a communication plan designed to avoid negative feedback from both members and the community.

The nearly $6.2-million Main Street Rejuvenation project has lines in both the 2021 and 2022 capital budgets and includes $3 million in Ontario Community Infrastructure Funding (OCIF). If the project is delayed, the OCIF money has a five-year shelf life and will go into the City's reserves until the project launches.

Deputy Mayor Tanya Vrebosch said, "We have to be sure we're paying attention to the rules around the grant application and those deadlines. We have five years but we don't want to keep deferring the project."

The City's engineering department does not anticipate the delay or construction until spring 2023 will cause a significant impact on the road and surface infrastructure — it is already considered to have reached the end of its useful life — although the "delay may result in some additional minor repairs in 2022," according to the associated staff report.

Still, Coun. Bill Vrebosch expressed imminent concern for the state of the streets to be rejuvenated as part of the project. "Public Works must make sure it doesn't get worse," before the delayed construction gets underway in spring 2023.