The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Members of Flin Flon City Council, along with Mayor Ballard, took the opportunity during their regular meeting Tuesday night to caution the motoring public about a new four-way stop intersection at the top of Sipple Hill. Although the four-way stop has sometimes caused traffic to back-up, council was in agreement that it was a necessary remedy to assist the flow of traffic that is being rerouted around the closed off Third Avenue hill. "People need to know that this will only be temporary," commented councilor Hanson, who said he has had several phone calls from residents on this issue. See 'We' P.# Con't from P.# The four-way stop, at the intersection of Ross Street and Hudson Avenue, is only in place while Third Avenue hill is closed off for repair work. Councilor Dave Law commented how the new stop sign at the top of the steep Sipple Hill was necessary to help the flow of traffic, since all the traffic going through the centre of town will now travel through that intersection. "We ask for the public's cooperation while the barricades on Third Avenue are up," said Law. "We can't have improvements without some inconvenience." Mayor Ballard echoed Law's comments, asking the public to be patient with these necessary traffic changes. "On a humorous note," said the Mayor, "I receive complaints all the time about the condition of our roads, and rightfully so, but now that we are doing some work to fix them, I'm getting even more complaints about the inconvenience." Mayor Ballard added that workers who are upgrading the sewer line under the Third Avenue hill have discovered a bigger problem than first anticipated. This will probably mean that the hill will have to be shut down again for a period in the fall to finish off the repairs. Flin Flon RCMP told The Reminder that they have not received any complaints, nor have they had any recent accident reports as a result of the new four-way stop. Some motorists have observed that, during the busier times of the day for traffic, there have been long line-ups of vehicles trying to get through the intersection, sometimes reaching almost as far back as the Co-op. A Reminder photographer, who spent about five minutes at the intersection to take a picture, reported that three vehicles drove through the new stop sign at the top of Sipple Hill without stopping. One of the drivers obviously didn't see the new sign, while the other two probably did, slowing down a bit and then proceeding up Hudson Avenue without coming to a stop. Caution is certainly necessary for motorists making their way through the intersection, especially during busy times, and when children are going to and from school. Using the Perimeter Highway may be somewhat out of the way for some motorists, but it does offer a route that is less congested. In their discussion at Tuesday's City Council meeting, councilors did ponder the possibility of erecting a flashing light heading up Sipple Hill to warn of the upcoming intersection. In other news from the Council meeting, a letter was received from Craig Hanley, Regional Manager of the Manitoba Community Planning Services who confirmed that his department will be meeting with Council on June 29. At that meeting, the proposed changes to the Flin Flon Development Plan will be discussed. These changes would result in some rezoning taking place, however the areas that are being considered have not been made public yet. Prior to any eventual rezoning decisions, public consultations will be held. Councilor Ahmad mentioned that he was a member of a three person delegation from the Flin Flon Rotary Club who met on June 11 with the provincial government to discuss the proposed Rotary seniors housing project. Ahmad said that the local club had originally hoped for a $2 million grant from the province. However, since the province is only going to commit $1 million to the project, the Rotarians will have to redesign their project. This means a scaled back version of the housing complex will probably be built, at the Rotary Court site behind Northland Ford. Ahmad said the local club members will be meeting to discuss the project. Also, councilor Ahmad mentioned that he had successfully completed the recent Manitoba Marathon held in Winnipeg, although he said it took all the strength he had to cross the finish line. Hoping to set a faster pace for himself this year, the councilor said it was a close call at the end, but added that he crossed the line, as did four other local area residents who ran the full 26.2 miles. One other area resident ran the half-marathon. Ahmad said it was noteworthy that there was this kind of local participation in the event this year and he commended those who took part.
