Orillia’s downtown of tomorrow is likely going to look dramatically different.
Picture curbless ‘flex’ streets, wider pedestrian spaces, unilock roads, trees and lights aligned along the sidewalk ... it's all part of a re-imagined downtown.
But, unless city councillors do some creative financing and juggle some other key projects, the revitalization of the downtown is likely a decade of tomorrows in the future.
On Monday night, council committee supported, in principle, the Downtown Orillia Streetscape Improvement Plan (DOSIP), which will be factored into future development plans in the downtown core.
The plan has evolved over many months.
“Over the course of the last nine months, the Downtown Orillia Streetscape Improvement Plan has endeavoured to reimagine the inspirational work” of the last downtown revitalization of the 1970s, said Jeff Duggan, the city’s senior planner.
Duggan told city councillors the DOSIP was “informed by extensive public consultation and discussion with staff in relevant departments.”
Duggan said the goal is “to create a well-designed, environmentally-friendly, fully inclusive and accessible streetscape that will further define the city’s downtown as a destination environment and contribute to an increasingly vibrant community.”
At the March 4 city council meeting, Stantec, the consultant firm that developed the plan, presented their 56-page report, Streets for All, to city council.
Since then, Duggan said, the city’s Active Transportation Committee and Accessibility Advisory Committee have thrown their support behind the program.
He noted the Peter Street arts community and the Downtown Orillia Management Board are “also supportive of the conceptual plans.”
However, Coun. Pat Hehn noted members of the Peter Street Arts District were not in favour of a uniblock road surface.
Duggan noted interlocking stone has advanced dramatically in recent years and noted there are “an infinite number” of choices. He also said the new uniblocks are seamless and don’t have the cracks and crevasses of past generation stones that created accessibility issues.
“Essentially, the arts community is looking for an exceedingly minimalist approach and, essentially, concrete rather than interlock,” explained Duggan.
They are advocating that because it would “create an artistic palette, for example, for three-dimensional artwork. It would be more conducive and a more cost effective road surface.”
Coun. Tim Lauer, while in favour of the concept, said he is concerned about the fate of the trees that line Mississaga Street.
“I got sort of nervous listening to the consultants,” said Lauer. “(They) keep talking about trees and how much they love trees” but also stress they have to align, which might put many trees in peril.
“How much respect are those trees going to get?” he asked.
Duggan said the “amazing tree canopy” downtown was one of the first things the consultants noticed. “They are quite remarkable.”
However, he conceded many may be removed.
“Unfortunately, with major streetscape (work) and a complete reconstruction, it will be extremely difficult to retain all those trees,” said Duggan.
He said during the detailed design phase, an arbourist will be called upon to provide input and determine, among other things, the cost effectiveness of replacing the trees in addition to other issues.
“Many, if not most, will likely need to be removed,” conceded Duggan.
Lauer warned Duggan that he will “get pushback on that” when the time comes.
Lauer is also worried about where the snow will end up during the winter months. But Duggan assured the Ward 4 councillor that the new design accommodates “snow storage”.
In addition to the designed "snow storage: areas, the consultants, during the March 4 meeting, explained how a heat strip can be installed to ensure hte "continuous heating of snow and melting along Mississaga Street."
Orillia Mayor Steve Clarke said Monday he "wasn’t initially in favour" of doing this project - not because it isn't needed. He didn't think the timing was right. He says he has changed his mind.
He commended the passion and leadership of staff and said the "right consultants" were hired.
"I believe Stantec has done a terrific job," said Clarke. He said the final report "captures some terrific design changes that will really make us a community that stands out and creates the kind of vibrancy we need."
As for timing, revitalization of the downtown is not contemplated in the city’s 10-year capital plan. At least for now.
Coun. Ralph Cipolla urged his colleagues to fast-track the plan. The long-time downtown merchant lamented the “deterioration” of the main street and said work was needed sooner rather than later.
Coun. Ted Emond said several councillors were in favour of moving up the schedule.
City CAO Gayle Jackson said that is possible, but it would mean delaying other projects already in the que.
The issue of timing will be discussed during a special pre-budget meeting to be held in June.
While the cost is not set in stone, such a plan is, generally, more expensive than a standard road reconstruction, staff noted Monday night.
According to a staff report, average standard streetscape costs have been estimated at approximately $4,600 per linear metre, whereas the flex street design has been estimated at approximately $6,000 per linear metre.
The total project area includes 1,820 linear metres; 709 metres would incorporate the flex street design.
The DOSIP involves the downtown core, generally. It includes Mississaga Street from Front to Albert streets, West Street from Coldwater to King streets, Peter Street from Coldwater to Colborne Street and the esplanade from Mississaga to Colborne Street.
WHAT’S THE PLAN
According to a staff report presented to council committee, key features of the DOSIP include:
A Flexible “Flex” Street
A flex street essentially eliminates traditional barrier curbs, resulting in a relatively consistent grade from the building walls on each side of the street.
The removal of traditional curbs will result in a fully accessible, multi-modal, shared streets approach.
The travelled portion of the street is also narrowed, reducing the speed of vehicles and providing the opportunity for all modes of transportation to interact symbiotically.
Peter Street Arts District
The prominence of the Peter Street Arts District as the home of artists, galleries and other arts-related enterprises is further recognized and enhanced by the DOSIP.
Peter Street provides a distinctive and exceptional sense of place that can be further enriched through creative urban design.
These innovative design concepts will continue to define Peter Street’s role as an artistic gathering place.
Laneways and Alleyways
The downtown’s numerous laneways and alleyways provide a unique opportunity to provide enhanced pedestrian connectivity from the numerous parking areas to Mississaga Street, Peter Street and West Street.
It is envisioned that the alleyways could be transformed into inviting walkways through improved surface treatments, unique lighting, street furniture, entrance features, security cameras, enhanced way-finding signage, public art, and patios, resulting in the transformation of an underutilized resource into a functional and welcoming feature.
Parking
Although a wide variety of opinions were received with respect to vehicular traffic and parking on the downtown streets, the consulting team has recommended maintaining two-way traffic and on-street parking.
On-street parking not only provides convenient proximity to businesses, particularly for those with accessibility issues, but has been demonstrated to have a traffic calming effect, reinforcing the multi-modal objective of the flex street design. The current DOSIP design does not propose the elimination of any on-street parking spaces.
Snow Removal
The flex street design has been reviewed and considered by Environmental Services and Operations staff responsible for maintenance and snow removal of the downtown streets. Operations staff is in favour of the Flex street concept as the design provides additional room to temporarily store snow until it can be removed.
The elimination of curbs also reduces obstacles and difficult turning radii that currently present complications to snow plowing efforts.
Further, with a widening of the sidewalk and ultimate realignment of boulevard trees, specialized snow removal equipment would no longer be required and standard sidewalk plows and blowers could be utilized.
Lakeview Avenue/Esplanade
Dovetailing with the conceptual work currently underway by the Ainely Group, the consulting team has been careful to integrate their design to ensure consistency.
The Stantec design proposes through traffic between Mississaga Street East and Elgin Street and diagonal parking directly adjacent to the park. These elements are separated by a unique landscaping feature creating a safe and pedestrian-friendly environment which is directly accessible to the park trail.
A unique gateway/water feature is also proposed at the future Colborne Street East intersection which will serve to animate this area of the park and draw pedestrians along the Esplanade.
