Major section of 102nd Avenue closed for next 3 years

Downtown Edmonton is about to get messy or rather, messier.

Construction work has plagued the city's downtown for monthsand it's likely to get more congested when 102nd Avenue is closed to traffic starting Monday.

The avenue will be closed between 96th and 103rd streets for three years while TransEd gets the area ready for the new Valley Line LRT.

Crews will start closing the road in stages on Monday, starting with 96thStreet and moving west. The closure is expected to be complete by the end of the day.

DeanHeuman, stakeholder relations manager withTransEd,stressed that people in vehicles or on foot will still be able to get across 102nd Avenue throughout the construction period.

"All of the streets are still open 97th, 100th 101st, 103rd those streets are still open," he said. "There will always be passageways going north and south for pedestrians and for vehicles."

The eastbound lane of 102ndAvenue between99thand97thstreets will remain open, as there is a loading dock that needs to stay open.

Two streets 101AStreet and 102nd Street endnaturally at 102nd Avenue.

The four streets that will remainopen may periodically bereduced toone lane, but that would most likely not happen until2019, Heumansaid.

• 102nd Avenue downtown to close for three years due to LRT construction

That was news to Lesley Paull, owner of Paull Travel on 102nd Avenue and 100A Street, who told CBC News she hasn't been told what's happening.

"I've heard it's going to be one lane closed, then the whole thing's closed," she said of local rumours. "So honestly, I don't really know because nobody has specifically told me."

Heuman said the company approached building owners.

"Every building owner that we go to, we say, 'It is up to you whether we go to talk to your tenants or you to talk to your tenants,' " he said. "In that specific case, they asked to control all communication with their tenants."

Quinn Nicholson, the city's lead spokesperson for the southeast LRT,confirmed TransEd must approach the building owners first before going directly to businesses.

He acknowledged the localcommunity will be affected.

"It's a big impact to commuters, to businesses, to pedestrians," Nicholson said.

Paull has owned her company for over 30 years and said that 15 to 20 per cent of her business comes from foot traffic.

"This is such a major street, that's really going to have a huge effect."

Nicholson said the city took atwo-tiered approach on its communications about the project. The city requiresTransEd to contact local building owners first,and then signs will likely appear when temporary fencing goes up.

Signs can't go up in advance, he said, "because they'll be going up on the actual fencing when construction begins in the area."

Heuman said the closure heralds a permanent change in the area.

"102[nd Avenue] will never look like this again," he said.

In three years, LRT tracks will cover 102nd Avenue east to west between97th Street and103rd Street. Bike lanes will be put alongside the tracks and there will be only one laneofeastbound traffic.

"This is a change that's going to impact people long-term," he said.

• Stop work order in place for Valley Line LRT site due to safety concerns
• Councillors push for answers on Valley Line LRT traffic impacts

Anyone with concerns about the project can email the city at LRTprojects@edmonton.ca or go to transedlrt.ca for more information.