Council revisits Santa’s Village Road project

Bracebridge councillors once again voiced their displeasure with the controversial Santa’s Village Road reconstruction project during the latest council meeting.

During the July 20 General Committee meeting District staff laid out plans for the road, which were widely panned by the Bracebridge councillors. Several took exception with the narrow width of the road’s new shoulders (0.5 m) but residents of the road have argued that anything wider would result in the destruction of hundreds of trees.

During last week’s council meeting, Coun. Archie Buie said the road reconstruction project was an example of the problems with two-tier governments. Buie said because the District is responsible for some of the major roads in Bracebridge, such as Manitoba Street and Taylor Road, they can make decisions without the lower tier’s approval.

Buie said he was “more than a little disappointed” in the direction the project was headed, saying it was “short-sighted” and it presents a number of safety concerns.
As such, Buie voted against approving the minutes of the general committee meeting, wherein District staff presented the project.
Geoff Carleton, Bracebridge’s director of Public Work said he hasn’t heard anything from District staff since the presentation, but Coun. Rick Maloney said he believed the District would still be taking into consideration Bracebridge’s concerns before making their final decision on the project.

Retail sales up

At the same meeting, the council also received some good news in the form of their regular BIA report. The report indicated that the majority of retailers in the downtown area of Bracebridge have rebounded exceptionally well from the lockdown and are now reporting higher than average sales this summer.
They also heard that the BIA has been hard at work removing graffiti from the buildings in downtown Bracebridge.