After so many years of planning and nagging and endless meetings, it is so nice to see parts of the Preston Street streetscaping appearing in final form. While one of the sections done last year got its trees but not its shrubs, the northern section go no plants (yet) at all. But this week benches have started appearing. These stylish aluminum slat benches have a centre arm rest. Several matching garbage cans have also appeared. This bench is bolted to the concrete base; in areas paved in brick, some bricks are removed and a discrete concrete base put in so that the bench is bolted to the concrete (if bolted just to a brick, they can be dislodged). The garbage cans are also bolted down.
A number of concrete bases have also been installed for the bollards that go on bulb outs to warn motorists where the curb line is located. These bollards are a much more attractive solution than the city's former use of a steel post with a yellow-black zebra stripe on it (see Rochester St for examples). I find the old posts and signs are so large they actually cause a hazard since they block the view of a person standing at the corner.
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Eric,
ReplyDeleteWe're pretty excited about the landscaping elements going in this week. As part of the stakeholders committee, you well know how long we have been working on this...
As for the shrubs, the City wanted the BIA not only to pay for these, but also to maintain and water them. This was not a responsibility we were willing to take on, so I don't think there will be any boxwoods planted. Our experience with the boxwood shrubs elsewhere on the street is that they catch all the litter making an unsightly mess.
Lori Mellor
Executive Director,
Preston Street BIA