Operations and Facilities manager Doug Brown said the town is doing this to meet minimum maintenance standards for municipal highways, as per Section 16.1 of the Municipal Act, which states all surface discontinuities exceeding two centimetres must be marked with fluorescent orange paint.
Fort Frances Times - By Duane Hicks, Staff writer - Monday, July 25, 2011
__________________________________________________
Pardon me?!?
It is understandable, that there is limited resources, when it comes to repairing town infrastructure. What is difficult to comprehend, however, is that, there is no resources, set aside for repairing the aging sidewalks of Fort Frances!
How old are some of the sidewalks in Fort? Well; I can personally attest, that they are over 20 years old in some places!! (lived in Devlin for the first 16 years) That means; for 20 years, there has been no money set aside, by any town council, for such an occasion!
I have a hard time with that.......
.......sidewalks, are imperative to any developed municipality!! They are the life-blood, to people of all ages; from babies pushed in strollers, to our elderly. They are a safe place to exercise, and a necessary straight line, to our many retail facilities.
As important as they are; sidewalks are an often ignored feature. Crumbling and heaving sidewalks, are a common occurrence in many Canadian cities and towns. The reason for this, is simplistic.....
.........when built; the sidewalks of Canada, were necessary. In that time, most families only had one vehicle; with the "bread-winner" using the family vehicle to travel to work. The remaining spouse, would walk to corner stores for groceries and household necessities. A paved path provided, safety and comfort, to the user.
In today's era; municipality resources are allocated to building and maintaining roads......
......with little thought given to the crumbling, archaic, cement paths of yesterday.
Which is unfortunate! If only, the council could understand a need for really good paved paths for its citizens to use! There is so much potential for a properly paved path; walking, biking, skating, family outings, parades / events, and better accessibility for the elderly!
When the costs of fuel, are so expensive; it would be in the council's best interests, to provide the citizens, with a better way to get across town..........
............and the fact, that it's a lot more green and clean?! Well, that's just the icing on the cake!