Thursday, September 9, 2010 - Bring Back the Heat !

Good Thursday morning and welcome back to Dawson Road Today!

Wednesday was cool and cloudy and warm and sunny and rainy and dry. (Am I lying?) I started my day out with a jacket on and had it on and off at least half a dozen times throughout the day. When it  rained it was mostly that cold misty drizzle. Not a pleasant day for anybody. The cool weather is expected to continue through to the weekend.

However, the crew was working all day in front of the Royal City Warehousing where they were installing and connecting surface drains to the main storm drain system and filling in what once was an open ditch. You can see the results of their work at the end of Wednesday in this photo. Remember, you can left click on the image to enlarge the picture and then return to this post by using the back arrow in your browser.

Citizens of Guelph will be going to the polls on October 25 to elect a new municipal government. To this point,there doesn't seem to be a lot of burning issues that are raising much controversy.Perhaps, all of the construction in this city could be/should be an election issue. Stop and think about it and make some decisions based upon that. I would encourage you to go to the city web site at   www.guelph.ca/vote  At this site you can 

1. check to make sure you're on the voting list
2. see who the candidates are for the office of Mayor
3. see who the candidates are in your ward for City Councillors
4. see who the candidates are in your ward for School Board Trustees
5. find out where you vote and when, including advance poll dates and locations

I think the city has done a good job of presenting this information. While I have my opinions from the viewpoint of the construction in the city, I have heard an awful lot of grumbling and complaining while on my rounds. This upcoming municipal election will be an excellent opportunity for you to express how you feel in a meaningful way. Get informed and then get out and vote.

We had a pile of new pipes stacked in front of our shop at Plants For All today, as shown here. Somehow I don't think they will be there very long before they are installed underground.

During the course of my weekly travels driving around the city, I have the opportunity to negotiate most of the construction sites going on in this city. Even with all of the good benefits that we expect in the end, this is a major inconvenience and disruption for everyone involved. I have noticed in recent weeks and particularly in the downtown core that pedestrians seem to take great delight in aggravating motorists by holding up traffic at construction intersections. I realize that pedestrians have the right of way; but please do your part in keeping things moving by quickly crossing the intersection when it is your turn. That's all I'll say.

Kudos to Guelph Transit for keeping the bus on route 22 running regularly during these days of construction.

As the crews are installing the new storm water concrete pipes some old pipes are still being removed. As shown in this photo, the pile is getting bigger.  It will soon be broken down into more manageable chunks and then hauled away to Lafarge to be ground into reusable road surfacing material. Good stuff!

Thursday already. The kids are back at school. Construction continues. Take some time for yourself. I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Brian- Plants For All