LRT realignment proposed

Today, stakeholders in the immediate vicinity of the proposed Cleary LRT station and media were briefed on a proposed change to the LRT route around Cleary Avenue (see inset, click to embiggen). The new route will turn south sooner to the east, which effectively makes it possible to have a proper station fronting onto Richmond Road, and takes the line out of the Unitarian campus property.

This was the City's originally preferred route. A station tucked behind the property at 747 Richmond Road - the strip mall - would have been uninviting and hidden. It also would have had a greater impact on Cleary from a traffic perspective. I'm fully supportive of giving the station this visibility.

A third benefit that hasn't received a lot of press is the preservation of green space in the NCC space behind 747 Richmond.

There's a lot of media attention being focused on this, so I won't get into a lot of the details. For our ward, there are some key considerations that bear mentioning:

• The property at 747 Richmond will need to be acquired in its entirety - whether through negotiation or expropriation. This site was part of an Ontario Municipal Board battle several years ago with the height capped in that decision. I have heard, for months, significant concern that the station might be incorporated into a new development there, with greater height offered to the developer in return. With the site now controlled by the City, we will be in a position to have a good community discussion about what development will occur there.
• There is a very small portion of the land owned by the condos at 727 Richmond that will need to be acquired - a small triangle of land with no structures on it. For both of these acquisitions (747 and 727), the City will begin negotiations if and when City Council approves the new plan.
• There is an above-ground structure that will be needed to the east and behind the 727 Richmond site, on NCC property. This structure would house ventilation fans that might occasionally be in operation during, for example, a fire in the tunnel or on very hot summer days if the tunnel needs to be cooled. It would also house an emergency exit from the station. This structure would be about 9' tall, and we've seen no designs for it. To reassure residents that it will not be an eyesore (and I'm confident it won't), I'll be asking for architectural renderings as soon as possible. Note, though, that this structure is common both to the old plan and new.
• Pedestrian, cycling and car connections to the site are paramount on everyone's mind. Those will actually be part of a separate consultation that is getting underway now, looking at the W-LRT stations as well as Richmond planning and re-build of a complete street. Details on that are to follow.
• Residents at 75 Cleary and 727 Richmond Road have already expressed legitimate concerns about noise and vibration from the train's operation. There are several levels of mitigation that can be used to ensure there's no impact. Today, the City is recommending what are called resilient fasteners to secure the rails to the ties. They believe these will ensure there's no impact. If, during consultations, there's any question that those might not be adequate, the City can explore the use of a floating slab floor.
• There is a public consultation planned for the evening of April 14 at Notre Dame High School from 6-9 pm.

I wanted to get this look out today, but I'll have more details in the coming days. Of course, I invite anyone with questions to contact my office.

On balance, I believe this is an elegant solution to some of the biggest issues with the previous alignment. Senior City staff are to be commended, in particular, for hearing the community's concerns and working diligently to overcome the challenges to addressing those. This proposal is able to be accomplished at the same cost, and my wholehearted thanks goes out to them for this work, as well as to my colleagues Councillors Blais, Egli and Taylor. To be sure, it raises new concerns for a different group of residents, but I believe that their challenges will be easier to address. I'm looking forward to continuing to work with residents and to hearing their feedback.