BARRIE, ONT. -- Despite recent setbacks, the city of Barrie still anticipates the Dunlop Street makeover to be done ahead of schedule.
“We’re looking at the end of July to open Owen to Clapperton,” said Tawnya Gurchin, Manager of Developer and Special Projects.
“There were some minor impacts with respect to the extreme heat conditions we were encountering over the last couple weeks,” she added.
Gurchin said construction workers needed extra breaks on those sweltering days where temperatures soared to over 30 C, and in some cases, working hours were adjusted.
The $13.1 million effort to make Dunlop Street more beautiful and accessible above ground and more modern below, was initially scheduled to finish sometime in November.
However, the city is targeting the end of October to pack up the fencing and road barriers for good.
The Five Points intersection will close to through-traffic in August, along with Dunlop and Toronto streets.
The stretch of Dunlop Street between Maple and Mary streets won’t be reopened until mid-August.
Some business owners admit they’re struggling through the noise, dirt, and hard-to-navigate sidewalks. But they are trying to keep perspective.
“I hate to sound like COVID’s positive, but it was a silver lining for us. We had to close while they did the majority of the work,” said Randy Aylwin, owner of the Grilled Cheese Social Eatery.
“It’s been definitely a challenge,” admitted the Wired Owls’, Eddie Mota. “But I think the thing to remember is the end result of how it looks. It looks beautiful, it looks inviting, and we’re in the home stretch now.”
