It was a smaller scale meeting on May 7 as Puslinch residents met once again for an update to the Morriston streetscaping plans.
CAO Karen Landry noted township consultants have been in constant communication with the MTO and “we’re hoping to hear a decision shortly.’
She noted that, as of the information meeting, the township was still waiting for Ministry of Transportation approval of the project.
As in previous public sessions, Aaron Hill, a landscape architect with McKinnon Associates, reviewed the project background and plans for the future “and regulatory things we must be mindful of.”
Hill estimated, “The process began roughly two-and-a-half years ago with Wellington County staff identifying a series of locations in Morriston which might be appropriate for additional plantings or signage to improve the streetscape presentation.”
Staff took that preliminary information to the MTO to get some feedback.
Following those discussions, McKinnon and Associates was hired to produce a plan to illustrate where trees could actually go and what opportunities existed based on constraints.
Hill explained there remain quite a few constraints to planting – not the least of which are the service right-of-ways.
He explained additional work was done to verify locations of hydro poles, culverts, swales and areas where trees cannot be planted.
“We tried to define areas where there were opportunities to plant.
“Hydro One has a series of fairly specific requirements which must be met for plantings in and around their service. In addition MTO also has regulated setbacks regarding the travelled surface of the road,” Hill explained.
He then said “by the time we were finished it left us with some fairly narrow planting opportunities.”
From that information, Hill presented plans based on the county information. Work will be over two years and Hill was hopeful that phase one would be able to proceed this year.
But for that to happen, construction workers require an encroachment permit from the MTO.
“All the conversations up to now have been conceptual in nature,” Hill said, noting the idea is to begin the first phase at the north end of Morriston with plantings on either side of Highway 6 to create a gateway entrance to the community.
That area includes the MTO work yard area north of Currie Drive.
Hill said the plan is to screen the work yard with a planting of conifers along the fence line.
As mentioned by Hill in previous meetings, the intent is to make use of trees and plants more adaptable to urban planting conditions – such as car exhaust and winter salt spray.
Hill agreed that typically, he would try to make use of native plant species “in this particular instance … if I have a choice between an exotic tree which is really hardy or a native tree – I’d pick the exotic because we want to make sure the trees will be there for years to come.”
Some of the trees to be planted include Colorado spruce and a limited number of shade trees including oaks and maples.
He noted that oak trees are very tolerant of winter salt sprays from the highway.
“That is the theme of most of the planting – what do I think is going to survive and do well.”
He also referred to the plaza at the intersection at Calfass/Badenoch Roads, which is essentially a paved parking lot extending to the sidewalk and highway.
“It’s not the nicest spot to walk and the proposal includes greening it up a bit and provide a bit of definition between the highway and the parking lot.”
This would include the construction of small raised planters. Raising the planters would keep winter salt spray to a minimum.
However, this area is one of the main areas of concern as it involves sight lines for traffic entering or exiting the parking lot.
“We can’t put in anything to obstruct the view. There must be a clear unfettered view to see cars coming up the highway.”
At the south end of Morriston, the road right-of-way widens, which presents more opportunities for planting.
There are still constrains and setbacks, but Hill said the idea is to create something and provide some shade to those using the sidewalks.
With the tendering yet ahead, Hill stressed the intent is not to be planting mid-summer, therefore if approval is delayed, planting could be this fall.
Councillor Matthew Bulmer commented on the need for speciality plants and the limitations in which plantings can be done by the municipality.
Bulmer asked that when work begins, Morriston residents be informed of the species of plants being used in case they wish to undertake similar work on their own properties – “at their own pace.”
Hill said private landowners taking part would enhance the overall theme and community appearance being generated by the plantings.
“I think sharing that information would be an excellent idea,” he said.
Landry noted residents will be notified if and when a permit is approved by the MTO.
