The City of Calgary is postponing construction work along Stephen Avenue after a group of businesses threatened legal action last week.
Work on the Stephen Avenue Revitalization Project was set to begin on Monday, the day after the end of this year’s Calgary Stampede.
But a coalition of business owners in the area said it would pursue legal action against the city over the project’s timeline and potential impacts to their bottom lines during the construction schedule.
“We’ve been working with Stephen Avenue businesses over the last several months to develop a construction plan that minimizes business impact,” the city said in a statement.
“However, we have continued to hear from some business owners that they remain concerned about how construction will impact their business operations.”
According to the city, construction will be delayed while officials explore options that would help further reduce business impacts during construction.
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Ward 7 Coun. Terry Wong, who spoke alongside the businesses threatening legal action, said the goal was to have the first phase completed before the opening of the Glenbow Museum.
He noted administration is looking at different phasing options for the project, and a potential fall start date for construction.
“There’s a time crunch to get it done,” Wong told Global News. “If we don’t start the work until September, it just means we’re going to have to double up the timeframe, maybe into the evenings and weekends, which adds up in costs.”
The project was set to see phased upgrades along the entire stretch of 8 Avenue, starting between Centre and 1 Streets southeast.
Construction would’ve included replacing underground utilities including a 1910-era water main, surface upgrades in the centre of the avenue, and new soil cells for tree growth.
The revitalization project will eventually include future phases that see work extending the entire length of 8 Avenue to the Mewata Armoury, but those phases remain unfunded.
“In front of the Glenbow Museum and Telus Convention Centre, we have utilities underneath that are turn of the century old, the last thing we want to do is have a water main break and basically shut down that block,” Wong told Global News.
In a statement, the Calgary Downtown Association said the work slated for Stephen Avenue remains critical.
“We will continue to support and advocate for our members in mitigating construction impacts on their business and what’s in the best interest of downtown,” the statement read. “This planned work is critical to updating utility infrastructure, such as the over 100 year-old water pipes.”
The City of Calgary noted its commitment to businesses “has always been to minimize disruption through thoughtful planning and clear communication, while balancing the need to complete critical infrastructure replacement work.”
The threats of legal action followed a $27 million class action lawsuit filed by a group of Marda Loop businesses against the City of Calgary in June for damages caused by a multi-year construction project in that neighbourhood.
A city spokesperson said there is also an effort to align work with other downtown projects like the Glenbow Museum and the Arts Commons/Olympic Plaza Transformation.
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