Trees cleared for Maley Drive, but construction still a few months off

The first trees have been cut in Sudbury to make way for the new Maley Drive Extension.

Crews have been clearing land along Municipal Road 80, around the future site of an interchange with the new $80 million road.

However, this doesn't mean that construction is imminent.

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The city says the clearing is being done now because there are restrictions under the Migratory Birds Conventions Act, which restrictson cutting trees during bird nesting season in the spring and early summer.

The city decided to cut these trees and brush now so that contractors won't be delayed when they get to work later this summer.

Those details are to be decided next week city council, when itwill vote on a plan to begin construction this July, with the aim of laying the final asphalt in 2019.

The plan is to tender the first contract in the next few weeks, with that work to be done by year's end. The remaining tenders are expected to go out in 2017.

Council will also be told that the city still needs to raise $11 millionof its $27 millionshare of the project, withthe restbeing paid for by the provincial and federal governments.