Families Ask Council To Move Towards Fixing Bridge

Following up on Mayor’s Fraser Tolmie’s election promise to build bridges in the community the owners of properties that rely upon the 7th Avenue SW Bridge to access their homes as well as their lawyer attended Council seeking action.

The bridge has been “temporarily” closed to vehicle traffic since being damaged by ice floes in 2015. The closure forced employees of the now closed Valley View Centre as well as property owners to traverse a longer route for access.

“After nearly six years the City hasn’t committed any money to this bridge…the City has enjoyed deferring the 7th Avenue bridge for too long,” legal counsel David Chow said.

Chow spoke about how City Administration has managed to thwart public discussion and move the entire issue of a public bridge and public roadway behind closed doors.

“On May 25th, 2020 we wanted to appear before City Council but we were moved in-camera,” Chow said.

“Despite our extraneous objections of being shut out of the public forum we were informed by Administration the discussion surrounding a public bridge and a public roadway was such a private and sensitive nature it warranted discussion out of the public eye and behind closed doors.”

Chow said the in-camera meetings were wrong.

“The entire process takes the transparency necessary and using the privacy legislation to muzzle the discussion was an abuse of process by the City,” he said.

Chow gave a history of the Valley View lands and how the City when they annexed the property from the RM of Moose Jaw in 1970 would be aware that the road allowances on the property had been built on and that there was no legal access through Valley View lands to reach the present Thorn and Avery lands. The two developments were issued development permits from the City of Moose Jaw in 1979 and 1998.

“Valley View has never been an alternate legal access for anyone other than the Valley View employees for the last 60 years,” he said.

Chow pointed to the bridge’s history and how it had been repaired in the past and then in 2015 the practice stopped.

“This is not the first time the bridge has been damaged by ice floes and each time the damage occurred the City repaired the bridge to maintain public access tp the river valley,” he said.

“Both (families) required access over the 7th Avenue Bridge…Until 2015 when the bridge was damaged by the Spring ice floe and the Coty temporarily closed the bridge.”

He asked that Council take action independent of Administration on the issue of the 7th Avenue Bridge.

“Please do not hand this off to Administration to prepare another report on the bridge to be reviewed in secrecy,” Chow asked.

Property owner Deb Thorn spoke about the two kilometre drive the closure of the Seventh Avenue Bridge and then requested that the west lane of the bridge be re-opened to traffic as the pilings on that side of the bridge had not been damaged.

“Tonight we are proposing Council open the west lane of the Valley View Bridge and this occur before Christmas. Only three pilings were damaged by ice, all under the east lane of the bridge. None of the pilings on the west side of the bridge were damaged,” Thorn said. ““It’s quick, cheap band aid fix that restores our access…it relieves the City’s current liabilities only to our family but to all families using the park should ever anyone ever need an ambulance.”

She claimed the City had pressured the ownership of the Valley View lands to allow the Thorn and Avery families to have access across their lands.

“I know City Administration has applied significant pressure on the former and current owners of Valley View to get them to agree to physical access that crosses the Valley View land.”

It needs to be noted Thorn is a former contract Economic Development Officer for the City of Moose Jaw and also works for the present ownership of the Valley Viiew lands (Carpere) serving as their local negotiator.

Thorn continued to poke at Administration and how they had handled the entire matter.

“City Administration remains determined to thwart our every effort to re-open the 7th Avenue Bridge regardless of the fact or doing what is morally correct,” she said. “We are done with City Administration delays, non-disclosures and secret meetings about us, without us.”

Property owner Tim Avery spoke about the everyday effect the bridge’s closure had on his family’s lives.

“It increases the stress of daily living by reducing services our tax dollars pay for,” Avery said.

The number of people using the area for walking and an off leash dog park area has raised the issue of protective services being unable to access an emergency.

“With loose dogs and walkers on the road even these tasks become a concern” with no access for ambulance, fire and police services, he said.