Sudbury moving ahead with Kingsway property purchases

Sudbury's plan to make the city more friendly for active transportation is taking another step in the right direction.

Last night at a planning committee meeting, staff recommended that the city purchase parts of two properties along the Kingsway 1232 Kingsway and 1244 Kingsway.

Those are areas in front of Thompson Automotive and Dairy Queen.

No price was specified, but the acquisition will be funded through the Kingsway Active Transportation fund.

The goal of the purchase, according to Director of Planning Jason Ferrigan, is to augment the active transportation infrastructure along the boulevard north side.

Residents, he said, will notice the area is in need of some assistance.

"As they drive up and down [they will] notice that there are currently gaps within that sidewalk fabric," Ferrigan said.

"What these decisions dothis evening is they allow us to fill those gaps within the system."

Ferrigan added that the purchase of the two properties is just one piece of a larger picture.

"City council's vision for the community over the long term is to ensure that we have more sustainable ways of moving around the community...reducing our reliance on single occupancy automobile trips," he said.

"So the improvements that we're going to see along the Kingsway are part of that broader vision for the community."

The purchase is not official until discussed in city council. That is expected some time in the near future.