South Frontenac Council – Jun 21/11

Wilma Kenny | Jun 23, 2011

Sydenham traffic woes

“My attention soon shifted from our wounded pet to concern for the safety of the vet, his assistant and my husband. The passing cars were so close they splashed us with our dog’s blood, and none of the traffic even slowed down.” Christine Sinclair, who lives with her husband and three small children on Rutledge Road just west of Sydenham, made a powerful plea for council to address the issue of speeding along Rutledge Road.

Both she and one of her neighbours have had crashed vehicles land on their front lawns: “We don’t allow the children to play in front of the house any more.” Sinclair herself had her vehicle struck from behind while she was stopped, waiting to turn into her drive: the other driver admitted he had been speeding, and had not seen her car. “Why is such speeding going unchallenged?” she asked. Admitting she had no answers to the problem, Sinclair asked Council to give serious consideration to possible options, such as: lowering the speed limit, better enforcement, education, or traffic calming devices. She gave council a list of concerned neighbours.

Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth confirmed that traffic and speeding is a problem throughout the township: he gets complaints every week.

Earlier in the meeting, Joe Galloway, planner for Frontenac County, had summarized a recent study, which projected population and housing growth over the next 25 years. In brief, he confirmed that South Frontenac’s growth rate was greater than either Kingston or the province, and is projected to remain so. He also noted that the majority of housing development continued to be outside the existing hamlets, with the majority of residents commuting to Kingston for work. The study’s parameters did not include corresponding traffic increases. (The entire report can be downloaded from the website: directionsforourfuture.ca. )

Segsworth hopes to bring a report to the August council meeting, addressing some of the township’s traffic issues and concerns.

What’s a Hamlet?

Mark Segsworth reported that the CFCDC has provided funding for a village beautification project again this summer. The township has hired a student for eight weeks, to paint, plant and clear weeds in Harrowsmith, Sydenham and Battersea. This service is available to businesses that are willing to provide paint and materials.

Discussion of this program and Verona’s Community Improvement Plan proved too much for Councilor Del Stowe, who plaintively asked why “Bustling Burridge” was not included in the list of township hamlets. CAO Orr said it was not presently recognized in the official plan as a hamlet, but council could choose to pass an amendment. Deputy Mayor Tinlin said that one definition of hamlet (British) was “a community without a church.” Further research suggests that in Canada, a hamlet is “an unincorporated community within a larger municipality.” Councilor Ron Vandewal asked whether a hamlet could ever lose its status. No one seemed willing to address this.