New Costco inspires excitement, foreboding in Leaside

As work forges to a February finish and opening for the Costco on Overlea Blvd., there is a replay of the anticipation and concern that marked the four-year journey to this point. Thursday’s Leaside Community Group is alive with reactions prompted by a City News story. The comments run from “Can’t wait” to “Nightmare.”  It is all old news because the issue has had the pants beaten off it at meetings everywhere including City Council and the Ontario Municipal Board.

EAST LEASIDE UNDER SEIGE

In fact, the thread published today morphs quickly into an attack on Toronto works planning. The east side of Leaside is struggling with more construction than it has seen at one time in living memory. Sewers and sidewalk replacement on residential streets and on Millwood and Laird Drive, the doubtful re-creation of the corner at Millwood and Laird plus the senseless deployment of traffic cones make a visit to anywhere in this area a challenge. It is said that homeowners on Southvale Drive are making it a habit to park with the nose of the car pointing out so they can make eye contact with drivers in the vehicles that are often end-to-end in front of their homes.

GREG MacPHERSON

Greg MacPherson makes a point at Leaside Community about the narrow and limited exits to the east from Leaside.

These geniuses just intentionally made the traffic worse (slower) at Millwood and Laird, so don’t expect any intelligent response to what they’re doing re: Costco. For this not to go to total crap, they need to connect some streets so that all of the traffic doesn’t have to go through the two, thin bottlenecks (Millwood and Wicksteed) by adding crossings at Copeland, Industrial and Esandar. Should also finally connect Leslie and Redway/Bayview, etc. But of course they won’t do any of those things. Instead, they’ll take away more lanes by putting in flowerpots down the middle of the road on Wicksteed, Laird and Brentcliffe. And Eglinton’s a write-off until 2020?

Overlea Costco targeted for completion by mid-February