As city officials move to upgrade Sackville Road's status in the local transportation system, they're predicting a major new housing development near the proposed intersection with Third Line East.
On Monday, city council will be asked to take the latest step advancing the long-delayed north–south alternative to Great Northern Road congestion.
Sackville is currently classified as an 'urban local' road.
Jonathan Kircal, an intermediate city planner, is suggesting that be upgraded in the Sault's official plan to 'urban collector.'
"It is more appropriate for Sackville Road to be designated as an urban collector," Kircal says in a report prepared for Mayor Matthew Shoenaker and ward councillors.
"The road already functions in this capacity, collecting residential and business traffic from the local roads in the Fort Creek neighbourhood and channelling it to Second Line.
"Upon further approval for construction, it will also serve to channel traffic to Third Line," Kircal says.
Extending Sackville to Third Line will open up a parcel of vacant land that, pending landowner interest and land use approvals, could prove helpful as the city scrambles to build more residential housing.
"The southwest corner of the planned intersection of Sackville Road and Third Line East contains a large privately owned vacant parcel," Kircal says.
"Extending Sackville Road would unlock this lot for development. The vacant parcel measures approximately 6.4 hectares.
"After accounting for municipal rights-of-way and challenging slopes, the site has the potential to accommodate between 158 and 238 dwelling units, equating to about 10 to 15 units per acre.
"This estimate is based on a low- to medium-density housing scenario. While more dwelling units could be accommodated on these lands through higher density developments such as apartments, the lot is located beyond the boundaries of a strategic development area.
"The nearest SDA is located at Great Northern Road and Second Line, and is approximately located one kilometre away from the subject area.
"The parcel in question is zoned 'rural area' and 'environmental management zone' and would therefore require the submission of Planning Act applications to permit residential and most other types of development."
The following are selected excerpts from Kircal's report to city council:
At present, the existing Sackville Road north of Second Line accommodates between 4,000 to 5,000 vehicles per day.
With the completion of the extension to Third Line, traffic volumes are expected to increase to approximately 8,000 vehicles per day.
While this does represent a 60 per cent increase in traffic, there are no anticipated impacts to traffic flow, road or intersection capacity.
Traffic-calming measures... will be explored in the subsequent design phase to better control vehicular speeds and increase pedestrian safety.
This could include some combination of narrowing the vehicular travel lanes, installing a pedestrian refuge, or incorporating a pedestrian crosswalk.
The detailed design phase is the next step in the project. It is where the initial concepts, feasibility studies, and preliminary designs are refined into precise and actionable plans.
It ensures all technical, structural, and functional aspects of a project are thoroughly developed before construction or implementation begins.
The extended road will be a two-lane road with a traffic speed limit of 50 km/hr, which is consistent with the rest of Sackville Road.
A sidewalk and multi-use trail will be constructed along the sides of the new road. A curb and gutter system will channel run-off into a catch basin for water quality before being released into the Fort Creek water channel.
The sidewalk and multi-use trail will fill a gap in the active transportation network by providing an additional north-south route that is comparatively safer than using Great Northern Road.
Further, a multi-use trail or sidewalk that extends eastward to connect to Industrial Park Crescent is being explored to provide direct pedestrian access to Great Northern Road for the Fort Creek neighbourhood residents; however, details and confirmation on facility types for this east-west link will not be known until the detailed design phase.
Constructing a new road at this location would enable the city to bundle it with a new sanitary sewer line.
When done during the same construction phase, the sewer line can be built at a more cost-effective rate. A new sanitary sewer line at this location would eliminate the need for the aging, high-maintenance sewage pumping station located nearby at the stub end of Industrial Court B.
This sewer line would also be able to service the developable land potential previously discussed.
Design details will be finalized at a later step and presented to council for approval in the forthcoming engineering report.
Pending approval, the tender and award of the first phase of the construction project is anticipated for Spring 2025.
Assuming it isn't cancelled because of inclement weather, Monday's city council meeting will be live-streamed on SooToday starting at 5 p.m.