The Chilliwack
Progress Thursday
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News
Sports
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100 Years
Spirit
Brent Butt brings standup to the Chilliwack stage.
Chilliwack middle celebrates its history.
Green Guy leads the Falcon fans.
Y O U R C O M M U N I T Y N E W S PA P E R • F O U N D E D I N 1 8 9 1 • W W W. T H E P R O G R E S S . C O M • T H U R S D AY, M AY 2 3 , 2 0 1 3
Weekend fire damages Fairfield home A Chilliwack family of five is without a home following a fire that broke out Sunday afternoon on Fairfield Island. The two adults and three children were not home at the time. Firefighters say the fire started just after 1p.m. in the two-storey home, located in the 10200 block of Kent Road. Firefighters entered the home, which was showing smoke when they arrived, to find the majority of the fire in the basement with fire extending up the walls into the attic. Firefighters managed to confine and extinguish the fire. There was extensive fire damage to the basement with smoke and water damage to the remainder of the house. There were no firefighter injuries. Emergency Social Services (ESS) responded to the scene and provided accommodation for the family. Cause of the fire is still under investigation but is considered accidental. A passer by had called 9-1-1 after seeing smoke coming out of the roof of the home. Wider sidewalks and outdoor seating could be in store for Mill Street in downtown Chilliwack. JENNA HAUCK/ PROGRESS
Mill Street could cultivate café culture
Plans include wider sidewalks and turning it into a one-way street Jennifer Feinberg The Progress
Chilliwack firefighters battle a blaze that started in a Fairfield Island home Saturday. No one was injured in the fire, but a family of five was forced to find other accommodations. SHANE MACKICHAN PHOTO
Planning for an upgrade to Mill Street in downtown Chilliwack is well underway. It could become a one-way street by early 2014. The idea for an upgrade first emerged in 2007 during the early stages of the downtown planning process. It featured a more verdant vision of Mill Street with wider sidewalks and outdoor patios, as well as street trees.
But the design meant sacrificing the parking on one side of the street, which was seen as a red flag and of big concern to local merchants. Council approved a plan Tuesday to consult with affected business operators and owners over the details of option C, which offered the most onstreet parking spaces of the five options presented. “What we hope to do is develop a consultation package with facts and figures to help businesses understand what
is being proposed,” said Rod Sanderson, city manager of Transportation and Drainage. Option C features a switch from two-way traffic to oneway traffic going north, and it was chosen by a majority of the stakeholders who attended a meeting to consider the options. A few businesses did not select option C, including one that proposed an entirely new option. “Much of the impact will be one of perception,” said the city staffer, since one-way streets are both “effective and efficient.” They just take some getting used to, he added.
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Local merchants and property owners also had input to offer on the construction timing, asking city officials to complete the upgrade during the January- March work window. “This period was selected to minimize business loss,” according to the staff report, “(and) stakeholders were advised and understood that this period comes with reduced construction efficiencies due to weather.” The costs of surfacing and underground work, at an estimated $510,000 are contained in the budget. jfeinberg@theprogress.com Twitter.com/chwkjourno
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