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Downtown Oakville construction complete

Reconstruction of Town Square delayed until 2023
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Downtown Oakville finished streetscape

You can now drive through downtown on a smoothly repaved and reopened Lakeshore Road.

But why drive through at all when you can stroll around on the newly widened sidewalks?

Downtown Oakville’s two-year $20 million reconstruction project is officially finished, with a ribbon cutting held last week to reopen the roadway.

Underneath the pavement, essential watermain, sewer and hydro infrastructure has been replaced. Above ground, the project refreshed the streetscape with wider sidewalks, new granite pavers, street lighting, benches and 48 new trees.

Kim Arnott
Kim Arnott

“The icing is what’s on top – all the guts of it is what’s been rebuilt,” said Ward 3 councillor Dave Gittings.

Thanks to the overhaul, downtown also now boasts smart city technology including public Wi-Fi, traffic counters and electric vehicle charging stations.

Plenty of space

This year’s work – phase two of the project – saw Lakeshore Road closed to traffic between Dunn and Allan Streets.

At The Ten Spot, a spa and nail salon in the centre of that block, Brooke McNutt welcomed completion of the project.

“Honestly, it’s been a long time coming but it looks stunning so it’s really exciting,” she said. “The big sidewalks are incredible.”

While wider sidewalks in Oakville’s “great outdoor shopping plaza” are helpful during the pandemic, Ward 3 councillor Janet Haslett-Theall is really excited about the future.

“It just opens up so many opportunities for residents and merchants,” she says. “When COVID is long in the rear-view mirror, there’s going to be a lot more celebrations happening downtown.”

Completion a relief to merchants

At Boa Boutique, Daphne Nissani was happy to see cars driving down the newly opened street.

But the twin challenges of construction and COVID have made for a difficult year, she admitted.

“We’ve been keeping busy and trying to find different platforms and ways of doing business,” said Nissani. “One of them has been live auctions on Instagram, so we were able to get rid of dated merchandise during the shutdown to be able to get new fresh stock that’s more relevant.”

Both Ward 3 councillors say they’ve heard merchants express their relief that the project is finished.

“What a sense of satisfaction and relief to see the smiles on the shopkeepers’ faces,” said Gittings.

Oakville News
Oakville News
Holiday decorations

Haslett-Theall, who recently replaced Mayor Rob Burton as council’s representative on the downtown BIA is quick to mention the holiday decorations and free weekend parking.

“It’s a great place to visit and it’s also a great place to shop,” she says.

Planters and other decorations have been installed this week, while the anticipated Ribbon Tree of Lights will decorate Towne Square beginning this weekend.

Kim Arnott
Kim Arnott
What’s next for downtown?
  • One block of Trafalgar Road between Lakeshore and Church will remain closed for two additional weeks, to allow for installation of fibre optic cabling, granite pavers, traffic signals and final concrete work.
  • Replacement of the temporary traffic signal at Trafalgar and Randall will also take place in the coming month.
  • Trafalgar Road will be resurfaced between Lakeshore to Randall in 2021.
  • Reconstruction of Towne Square was originally scheduled for 2019, but water and wastewater infrastructure repair issues were identified. While the Region of Halton completed that work last month, reconstruction of the square has been pushed off until 2023.
Towne Square Redesign | Town of Oakville
Towne Square Redesign | Town of Oakville

Towne Square Redesign Concept Approved - May 2019

While eager to see the square transformed, the councillors say people want a break from construction work.

"The majority of the feedback we’ve gotten is that there’s been too much disruption,” said Haslett-Theall. “So, we’re going to enjoy our downtown and time (the Towne Square work) in a way that minimizes the impact.”

The Towne Square clock is being refurbished and will be stored safely until final work on the square is complete, added Gittings.

And in the longer term?

The next big project on the downtown horizon is the Downtown Cultural Hub, an initiative exploring ways to link, renew or replace downtown cultural facilities such as the library and performing arts centre.

The now-closed Centennial Pool, which was replaced by the Oakville Trafalgar Community Centre, is to be demolished.

While no final decisions have been made, Haslett-Theall says there have been discussions about creating an amphitheatre on the site, to open a view to the creek and create “a lovely outdoor venue.”

The adjacent closed firehall station at Randall and Navy Streets is a development site, with Gittings suggesting it would make a great downtown hotel.