A new street plan for Sooke is just around the corner, with a fall construction start likely on a route that will provide an alternative to busy Sooke Road.
The basic concept for a revamped road system in and around Sooke’s town core has been in place for some time, said Sooke Mayor Wendal Milne. The strategy also includes the municipality’s first roundabout, in front of the Evergreen shopping centre.
Creating the connector to run beside Sooke Road is the first priority, Milne said. The initial portion of the connector is expected to be completed by next summer, about the same time construction is slated to begin on a roundabout with an estimated cost of $600,000.
Milne said the municipality has already bought land alongside Church Road, which runs perpendicular to Sooke Road near the centre of town. The connector will run from Church behind the Evergreen shopping centre and join Otter Point Road.
“That way, if there are any temporary road closures, we would have a way around the town centre,” Milne said.
Sooke dealt with just that scenario last week when a suspicious fire destroyed a portion of the Evergreen shopping centre. Traffic on Sooke Road was halted for several hours.
Sooke Fire Chief Steve Sorensen said the connector will be a good addition from a safety standpoint.
“Once the bypass route is done it gives us better access to places that now take us some time to get to,” Sorensen said.
Milne said council has put a lot of effort into making the road plan a reality.
“Over the last year or so, council has been working with landowners to come to a deal to acquire this land,” he said.
“Even if we don’t complete it all in this council term, the land will be in place.”
The connector project will include a multi-use trail, for which a tentative $250,000 grant from the provincial government has been secured.
The overall cost will be about $2.1 million.
Also in the works is a dedicated link to the ocean.
A key right-of-way has been secured to tie in various elements and provide public waterfront access on the other side of Sooke Road.
“We purchased 10 metres down to Goodmere Road,” Milne said. “We actually need more than that, but it will form the basis of the start of a road.”
The road improvements, especially the waterfront tie-in, are supported by Dan Pudwell of Sooke Coastal Explorations. His family business runs whale-watching tours from the Salty Towers Oceanfront Resort on Sooke Harbour.
“We definitely like the plan,” he said. “It will definitely help customers to get around and find our place.”
Design work on the added roads and the multi-use trail is already underway.
Milne said the cost of the road scheme is largely covered by money on hand and won’t affect municipal taxes.
