The Official Moncton, NB Project Thread

[BlackYear]

Nice parking!

[mmmatt]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

personal note - the new Lawton's Pharmacy next to the new Sobeys also opened on the weekend. It's really a zero sum gain for Elmwood Drive however, because the old Price Chopper closed with the opening of the new Sobeys and the old Lawtons further down Elmwood is also now closed. When the new NB Liquor location opens, the old store on Elmwood will also close. This will leave some significant vacancies on the street.....

I wouldn't exactly say its a "zero-sum" gain for Elmwood as a whole...as the new Lawtons and Sobeys are both significantly larger than their predecessors. That being said the bottom end of Elmwood is losing out big time...especially with the loss of Lackluster Video on top of it. There was a crew out painting the former price chopper today...hopefully they will be able to lease it soon.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by mmmatt

I wouldn't exactly say its a "zero-sum" gain for Elmwood as a whole...as the new Lawtons and Sobeys are both significantly larger than their predecessors. That being said the bottom end of Elmwood is losing out big time...especially with the loss of Lackluster Video on top of it. There was a crew out painting the former price chopper today...hopefully they will be able to lease it soon.

Oh, it's no question that the new Sobeys/Lawtons (and soon to be NB Liquor) plaza on Elmwood is two giant steps forward for the residents of north central Moncton, but the profusion of resultant empty storefronts further down Elmwood is at least one step back.

If a new tenant for the Price Chopper location could be found, this would certainly help!

[MonctonDowntown]

Regarding the Botsford/Wheeler intersection, something definitely has to be done. Wheeler is a main thoroughfare and to be forced to stop at the Botsford/Lewisville Road intersection is far from ideal!!

Due to the nearby train overpass issue already noted, I think the best solution is to create a subway whereby the traffic going between Botsford and Lewisville would go under Wheeler Blvd easing traffic congestion on Botsford ,and more importantly, making Wheeler 100% traffic light free between the traffic circle at Halls Creek in Dieppe all the way to the traffic circle at West Main Street (Causeway) area. MD.

[David_99]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

If a new tenant for the Price Chopper location could be found, this would certainly help!

Take with a huge grain of salt, but I've heard rumblings of a Bowling Alley. Rumours from some of the old Price Chopper staff.

[mylesmalley]

Originally Posted by MonctonDowntown

Regarding the Botsford/Wheeler intersection, something definitely has to be done. Wheeler is a main thoroughfare and to be forced to stop at the Botsford/Lewisville Road intersection is far from ideal!!

Due to the nearby train overpass issue already noted, I think the best solution is to create a subway whereby the traffic going between Botsford and Lewisville would go under Wheeler Blvd easing traffic congestion on Botsford ,and more importantly, making Wheeler 100% traffic light free between the traffic circle at Halls Creek in Dieppe all the way to the traffic circle at West Main Street (Causeway) area. MD.

You wouldn't be able to with the creek right next to Wheeler.

[macas539]

I dont think the Wheeler/Lewisville intersection will be changed anytime soon. Any potential reconfiguration would be too expensive and I don't think the city or province will dole out any big bucks in the forseeable future. Traffic is bad at that intersection but it's certainly not unbearable. There are other streets that need attention before this area. The Berry Mills rd for instance...that absolutely needs widening up to at least Edinburgh. I drive that area every morning and the traffic sucks! If the province can't afford to improve this simple area then they certainly can't afford flyover ramps and the like.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by macas539

There are other streets that need attention before this area. The Berry Mills rd for instance...that absolutely needs widening up to at least Edinburgh. I drive that area every morning and the traffic sucks! If the province can't afford to improve this simple area then they certainly can't afford flyover ramps and the like.

Agreed. It was sheer unadulterated idiocy on the part of the Department of Transportation that they didn't widen Berry Mills to four lanes when they improved the Berry Mills/Horsman intersection.

I mean, they widened that intersection to five lanes and then inbound, it's back to two lanes within 200m. Talk about being penny wise and pound foolish!!!!!

In the mornings, the traffic inbound on Berry Mills is still backed up to the Horsman intersection. It can take 8-10 minutes to go the km to Edinburgh Drive.... :

[mylesmalley]

I don't know if it was the province or the city that paid to have the road widened at the intersection. I assume it was the city though, because it was all part of the Horseman/Industrial Park project.

[JHikka]

I'm under the impression that Berry Mills (H 128) is provincially operated. I know nothing of the area itself, but I agree in regards to widening. Berry Mills is typically the exit I take to enter Moncton and i've noticed it getting much busier and built up over the past few years. Perhaps the provincial and municipal governments can agree on some sort of deal to have that road widened furthermore.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by mylesmalley

I don't know if it was the province or the city that paid to have the road widened at the intersection. I assume it was the city though, because it was all part of the Horseman/Industrial Park project.

It's a provincial highway and I'm pretty sure that the province was responsible for this half-assed solution. I'm pretty sure that they know they made a mistake. A couple of weeks ago, there was an article in the paper where they quizzed local MLA's about their priorities for the city, and one of them (I forget who) mentioned that one of the priorities should be widening Berry Mills from Horsman to Edinburgh to four lanes.

[mmmatt]

Within the next 10 years I would love to see:

- Mapleton 4 lanes from Mountain to the TCH

- Berry Mills 4 lanes from (at the very least) Edinburgh to Horseman

- Harrisville 4 lanes from Caledonia to the 15

[macas539]

In regards to Mapleton I do agree it should be four lanes from Mountain to the TCH, however I did see an article a while ago in the Times and Transcript in regards to the road and the improvements already done to it. I believe the paper quoted Alcide Richard as saying there were no plans to ever widen Mapleton past Plaza as that area is residential and the city wants to keep it smaller. The reason also had something to do with the city not wanting to encourage drivers to use it as a main thoroughfare through the residential section between Mountain and Plaza Blvd. I wish I could come across that article again, I remember chuckling to myself when I read that statement.

[Sunnybrae]

I wonder if some of the traffic problems could not be solved by simply using proper signalling or different patterns at busy times of the day. For example, the causeway should be two lanes in for the morning and two lanes out for the evening. Maybe Lewisville/Botsford should be closed between 430pm and 530pm with only on/off ramps used. Other roads could be turned into oneways to get traffic into the city and industrial parks in the morning and reverse in the evenings. Just some thoughts.

[mylesmalley]

In the grand scheme of things, I think traffic at Botsford could be greatly improved just by lengthening the lights so more traffic can move per light on Wheeler, at least at rush hour.

There are much more pressing traffic snarls in the city which should be dealt with first. namely: Dieppe Blvd at Route 15, Paul/Acadie/Champlain, Berry Mills, and the ramps around Trinity Drive and Mountain.

[Sunnybrae]

Well "Pressing" usually means the lineup your in at 5PM. The traffic line at the causeway traffic circle around 5pm can reach up Wheeler past the St. George overpass. I think all traffic within the city needs to flow together and all roads should be utilized to the maximum.

[mylesmalley]

The problem there is that people don't' know how to use a traffic circle .

People are supposed to yield to drivers already in the circle, but otherwise continue unimpeded. What happens all too often is that the guy in the circle stops to let someone on Wheeler go in. In principle you think, 'Hey, they're alternating and everybody gets to move', but in practice, you just clog up the circle causing backups everywhere leading up to it.

It would help if there was a dedicated lane off Wheeler that went directly to Salisbury Road. Unfortunately that would involve widening the underpass, and now that the city has narrowed Salisbury Road, would only create headaches down the line.

[BlackYear]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Agreed. It was sheer unadulterated idiocy on the part of the Department of Transportation that they didn't widen Berry Mills to four lanes when they improved the Berry Mills/Horsman intersection.

I mean, they widened that intersection to five lanes and then inbound, it's back to two lanes within 200m. Talk about being penny wise and pound foolish!!!!!

In the mornings, the traffic inbound on Berry Mills is still backed up to the Horsman intersection. It can take 8-10 minutes to go the km to Edinburgh Drive.... :

I never use this road, but I have used it 4 times in the past week to unload some garbage at the dump. On my way back, it doesn't take a genius to see the complete nonsense to not have completed the 2 lanes all the way to Edinburgh drive. I'm sure 40% of the drivers are turning right anyway!

[Sunnybrae]

Originally Posted by mylesmalley

The problem there is that people don't' know how to use a traffic circle .

People are supposed to yield to drivers already in the circle, but otherwise continue unimpeded. What happens all too often is that the guy in the circle stops to let someone on Wheeler go in. In principle you think, 'Hey, they're alternating and everybody gets to move', but in practice, you just clog up the circle causing backups everywhere leading up to it.

It would help if there was a dedicated lane off Wheeler that went directly to Salisbury Road. Unfortunately that would involve widening the underpass, and now that the city has narrowed Salisbury Road, would only create headaches down the line.

The problem is not Wheeler to Salisbury Road. Most people take the St. George or Baig Blvd. exit for that. The problem is Wheeler and west Main converging into one lane heading for Riverview. If west Main traffic did not let Wheeler traffic merge, Wheeler traffic would reach back to the Killam Drive overpass.

[MonctonRad]

Abridged from today's T&T
http://nbbusinessjournal.canadaeast.com/transcript/article/1456018

Kent to open new store in Riverview
Published Tuesday November 15th, 2011

Building supplies chain to take over former Sobeys location
By Eric Lewis
Times & Transcript Staff

A new Kent Building Supplies store will open in Riverview in the coming months.


GREG AGNEW/TIMES & TRANSCRIPT
This former Sobeys location in Riverview is being converted into a Kent Building Supplies.

The store will open in the former Sobeys location on Coverdale Road, which was vacated last year when the grocery store chain opened a new store on Findlay Boulevard.

Riverview's director of economic development Shane Thomson confirmed that Kent was moving into town, filling a large vacancy on Riverview's main road. The store is expected to open in the spring, and a job fair will be held soon to fill positions.

Calls to Kent officials in Saint John yesterday were not returned, but numerous trucks were spotted outside the Coverdale Road building yesterday.

The former Sobeys location is actually a relatively new building. It initially opened in 2000, replacing an older Sobeys building on the same land. The building will likely have to undergo renovations to suit Kent's operations.

Riverview Mayor Clarence Sweetland said the town is happy to welcome Kent to town.

Sweetland also said that a few businesses have expressed interest in possibly moving into the town-owned Chocolate River Station. Meant to be a tourist attraction, the centre on Coverdale Road has taken a hit in recent weeks as two tenants - Ganong Chocolates and Olivier Soapery - closed their stores.

Briggs Maples, Gateway Gallery and Change of Pace Pottery are still operating, however, and Business Riverview's offices are located in the centre.

Sweetland says the town is still optimistic the Chocolate River Station can be a success. A weekly summer market drew large crowds on Friday evenings.

Sweetland said some of the centre's tenants depended on tourism business, which was down this past summer.

"Things are still looking promising for the Chocolate River Station," he said. "We have other people knocking on the door who are interested in moving in there."

The mayor wouldn't name any particular businesses that are considering moving to the station, but he did acknowledge the Riverview Art Centre's proposal to operate out of the building, saving their location in Riverview High for larger events.

personal note - It was already speculated on our forum several months ago that Kent might move into the old Sobeys location on Coverdale Road. This will be the third Kent store in metro Moncton. It will be most welcome to see this empty storefront filled.

I wonder though if this is a pre-emptive strike against any new potential competitors (Rona, Lowes) trying to enter the Moncton market. If the market is already saturated by Kent, then it will be less attractive to any potential competitor. It's the same sort of tactic used by Shoppers Drug Mart and Sobeys in Moncton. They have a dominant market share compared to their competitors (PJC, Lawtons, Superstore, Co-op or, in the case of Kent - Home Depot).