Residents and business owners around Cartier Ave. in Pointe-Claire had the chance to air their grievances Monday night.
Ongoing construction work on the busy stretch of road was supposed to wrap up in mid-October. Work ground to a halt, though, when the contractor filed for bankruptcy.
Pointe-Claire Mayor John Belvedere met with a packed house at a public meeting, where a lineup of business owners told their all-too-familiar stories.
“The store access is pretty much non-existent,” said Gary Davis, owner of Action Scuba. “We have a little back alley we're trying to get people down.”
“If I think it's annoying, then a lot of people who may be visiting the village will feel the same,” added Kristen Smart, who owns the boutique Joie d’Olives.
However despite the delays, Belvedere promised the road will be repaved by the end of next week after the city found a new company to complete the $4.6 million project.
“Believe it or not, the worst part of the job is done,” he said. “All the pipes are in, all the excavation is done, two-thirds of the work is already up to the rough grade.”
The original contractor put up a bond so taxpayers shouldn't have to foot an extra bill, said Belvedere.
Work on the street re-started Monday morning.
“Our big plan to tell you tonight is that we'd like to have all the sidewalks in and a coat of asphalt down by the 15th of December,” said Belvedere.
Local resident Scott McMillan is skeptical.
“It’s not going to happen. There's a six-feet hole in the ground that goes about half a kilometre. I'm no genius but it's going to take a while to get it done," said McMillan.
Belvedere said it's possible because he estimates the former contractor was just 10 days away from finishing the job.
Smart said even if the major work is finished next week, it's too little, too late.
"They want to just drive by and keep going to somewhere else that isn't a pain to get into," said Smart.
The last of the work, including landscaping and the bike path, is expected to be completed in the spring.
