East Hill road not as wide as originally planned

By Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star Published: October 24, 2012 1:00 AM One Vernon road isn’t quite what was expected.  City staff admitted Monday that 26th Street, between 23rd and 28th avenues, is narrower than council and residents were originally told. “It wasn’t our intent to mislead members of council or the public,” said Will Pearce, chief administrative officer. The road was reconstructed between 2004 and 2006, and a recent review indicates the road is two feet narrower than projected. “The as-constructed drawings weren’t finished and we thought they were,” said Rob Dickinson, engineering manager. There have been complaints about vehicles being unable to pass with parking on both sides of the road. Congestion is particularly bad on Sundays because there is a church in the neighbourhood. Coun. Brian Quiring is one of those who was questioning the width of 26th Street after construction. “It’s frustrating. I was assured the road wasn’t made narrower and it has been. “The two feet the road is narrowed is the difference between having a functioning road and not having a functioning road.” Staff is looking at options to improve traffic flow, and while Quiring isn’t sure what should be done, he says the current situation can’t be allowed to remain. “Let’s  make sure it doesn’t happen again,” he said. “If it was truly a  mistake, we should go back to the person who made the mistake and let’s get them to fix it.”