Forestdale Drive is being proposed to connect to a new major development.
THIS IS GIANT RED FLAG FOR COUNCIL
This is a major safety concern to all the residents and families of this narrow and sloping roadway.
Opening up Forestdale Drive, would increase the risk to the children and families who walk up and down the hill’s roadway. There are no sidewalks and the roadway is only 8.6 m wide and much less in the winter with the snowbanks narrowing the roadway even more.
For comparison, Grandview is 10.3m wide and has an extra, side walk , and Montrose is 11.6 m wide. Roadways were designed to be connector roadways, Forestdale was not.
Not only was the top of Forestdale Drive not designed for more traffic, it was heavily bermed up, and elevated, and many homes are now dealing with the consequences of having rubble and slag supporting the roadways and their lots. The top of Forestdale Drive is not designed to support a new roadway, and new lots. Ideally all issues with Forestdale Drive can be resolved and managed by terminating the top development in a small cul de sac.
There is absolutely no need to connect Forestdale to a new development regardless of how long that idea has been tossed around and injected into application of subdivision plans, without due regards to the safety hazards that would pose for the community.
Building out the top of Forestdale Drive with a connector to a new subdivision of a proposed 455 semi-detached homes connected to a divided highway, not only fundamentally changes the fabric of the neighborhood, but it poses a very well founded safety concerns for the children and families who already have to be extra careful and considerate when using the roadways.
It is a major safety liability to the City to allow for Forestdale Drive to become a through way connector road. This is the notice from the knowings and experience of the residents of the street; they all know and see the potential dangers and problems that would arise as a result of Forestdale being a connector through way with increased traffic.
In order to ameliorate the risks Council should not allow the street to connect and its top may be carefully planned out in a smaller cul de sac, or a park.