FAQ

Improvements to Church Street East are necessary to address the deteriorated roadway and underground infrastructure, as well as the aging bridge infrastructure. The Region is also using this opportunity to widen the existing sidewalks to enhance active transportation and provide much needed snow storage. Additionally, new sidewalk and new on-road cycle lanes will be added east of George Street and East of Duke Street, respectively, to further promote and enhance active transportation. 

- Complete replacement of the pavement and road structure, including new concrete curbs on both sides of from Arthur Street to George Street, and new curb from North Side only from George Street to 270m East of Spruce Lane;

- Widening of existing sidewalk from 1.2m to 1.8m from Arthur Street to Duke Street; 

- Addition of new 1.8m wide sidewalk on North Side only from Bolender Park Pavilion to 270 m East of Spruce Lane;

- Construction of new 1.50 metre wide on-road cycling facilities on each side of Church Street East from Bolender Park Pavilion to  270 m East of Spruce Lane; 

- Replacement and upsizing of sanitary sewers, watermains, cellar drains, storm sewers and all associated services to homes and businesses; 

- Underground burial of existing Hydro poles from Memorial Avenue to Duke Street and addition of new lighting poles;

- Installation of a new Southbound Left Turn Lane from Church Street East onto Arthur Street; 

- Installation of a new Northbound Left Turn Lane from Church Street West onto Arthur Street. 

- Rehabilitation of the Canagagigue Creek Bridge with replacement of parapet walls, approach/end walls, bridge waterproofing and asphalt

The planning for these infrastructure improvements was undertaken by a “Project Team” consisting of a collaboration of staff from the Region of Waterloo, the Township of Woolwich and Ward 1 Woolwich Councillors.

The preparations for construction were coordinated by Region staff in consultation with Township of Woolwich staff and Ward 1 Woolwich Councillors. 

For Phase 2 of construction between Duke Street and 230m East of Spruce Lane being undertaken in 2023, traffic control will be a mix of full and partial closures. 

There will be 3 different stages with 2 sub stages. 

For Stages 1A and 1B Church Street East will be closed for through traffic from Arthur Street to Northfield Drive for a period of approximately 7 weeks.  More specifically, 

• Stage 1A - through traffic will be closed between George Street and Larry's Lane for a period of approximately 2 weeks.  George Street and Bolender Park access/egress to/from the west.
• Stage 1B (after completion of Stage 1A) -   through traffic closed between Duke Street and George Street for a period of approximately 5 weeks.  George Street and Bolender Park access/egress to/from the east.

Stages 2A and 2B will commence when Stages 1A and 1B have been completed. 

Theses stages will see partial closures of Church Street East. More specifically:

• Stage 2A - Partial closure for approximately 6 weeks.  Work to be performed on the north side of Church Street East, traffic travelling on the south side.  From Duke Street to George Street there will be 2 way traffic.   From George Street to 230m East of Spruce Lane, one-way traffic will be allowed only in the west direction. There will be temporary signals present at the intersection of Church Street East/George Street. 
• Stage 2B Partial Closure for approximately 4 weeks (after completion of Stage 2A) -  Work to be performed on the south side of Church Street East, traffic travelling on the north side.  From Duke Street to George Street there will be 2 way traffic.   From George Street to 230m East of Spruce Lane, one-way traffic will be allowed only in the west direction. There will be temporary signals present at the intersection of Church Street East/George Street. 

All businesses within the fully closed section will be open and can be accessed via Memorial Avenue, Cross Street, Center Street, and Duke Street. 

Through traffic is any traffic that are using Church Street East to pass through the section between Arthur Street and Duke Street; i.e. the person is not residing, visiting, nor conducting business within this section.  

Local Traffic is defined as residing, visiting, or conducting business within this section. Local traffic will be accommodated.

The reason for the full closure is the deep underground infrastructure which needs to be replaced within the Church Street/Duke Street intersection as well as east of George Street.  There is not enough room within this corridor to conduct deep excavations, safe trenching, accommodate worker personnel, material and equipment, and safely operate one lane of traffic.   Closing the road fully allows the work to be completed more efficiently and in the safest manner possible.  

Region and Township staff are aware of the inconvenience and appreciate the public's full cooperation in this matter.

The 2023 Works (Duke Street to 270m East of Spruce Lane) are anticipated to last from June - November 2023   

In preparation for the Region’s road works, Waterloo North Hydro (WNH) has already completed necessary hydro pole relocations within the corridor.  WNH and Rogers are constructing new underground infrastructure on Church Street East between Arthur Street and Duke Street, to ultimately remove the overhead pole lines.  WNH will be managing this work directly.  Businesses and residents will receive direct communication from WNH with more information on their work and appropriate contact information.  Advanced notice will be given to those potentially affected by short-term planned power outages.  WNH is expected to complete their work around the end of April 2022.

We will maintain pedestrian access at least on one side of Church Street East. Where the sidewalk is close to deep excavations, we will install temporary fencing and signage to redirect pedestrians. 

We will maintain residential/commercial driveways to the greatest extent possible during construction. We will need to temporarily block access to and from driveways on Church Street East for short-term periods when completing certain construction operations. Where a disruption to your driveway is expected, we will notify you at least 48 hours in advance of this disruption. If necessary, we will offer alternate parking.

All businesses between Arthur Street and Duke Street will remain open and can be accessed from Church Street. 

Home Hardware will be accessible from Duke Street at all times. 

Bolender Park Splash Pad will be accessible from George Street at all times. 

We expect to trim or remove some existing trees to accommodate the proposed improvements. It is our practice to replace each tree removed with two trees, where space permits in the road allowance. We will also repair any grassed areas disturbed during construction to equal or better condition with topsoil and sod, and regrade driveways as necessary to blend smoothly with the newly constructed roadway. Any new boulevard landscaping will occur in the year following construction. 

Some residential/commercial properties along Church Street East may currently have hard landscaping features such as rock gardens, ornamental lights, underground sprinkler systems or similar landscape features that are currently situated on the road right-of-way rather than on private property. If your property is identified as having these types of features on the roadway right-of-way, you will be contacted well in advance of construction and be requested to relocate these items from the right-of-way prior to construction.

We will monitor the amount of dust generated by construction activities on a daily basis. When necessary, we will ensure that the contractor uses proper dust suppression measures (i.e. the application of water and/or calcium chloride) in accordance with the Region’s standard practice.

If you live on any of the following streets, 

• Church Street East from Duke Street to 230m East of Spruce Lane
• Larry's Lane
• Spruce Lane

 we ask that during construction, you continue to place your garbage and recycling boxes at the end of your driveway for pick-up by 6am. When garbage collection vehicles do not have access to your driveway due to the work or full closure, our contractor will relocate your garbage and recyclables and return the empty containers afterwards. We ask that all residents mark their containers with their address for easy identification. For regular garbage, please use black bags as much as possible in order to minimize on the amount of bins. During the construction, please refrain from placing out large garbage items onto the curb (i.e. furniture, appliances, etc.)

In the document library on this webpage, there is a document with further instructions Curbside waste collection during construction. 

In order to make connections to the existing system, temporary water service interruptions will be required as part of this work. Water service interruptions will likely be less than half a day in duration and will likely occur between 9 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Monday to Friday unless other arrangements have been made. Notices of Water Service Interruption will be delivered to your door a minimum of 48 hours before any required water service shutdown.

Numerous properties within the project limits were constructed prior to 1900 and as such are considered to be potential heritage resources. Construction of the proposed improvements will be confined to the roadway corridor and is therefore not expected to adversely impact any abutting properties. We will be hiring a firm and contacting local property owners in advance for permission to conduct pre-construction condition surveys of the exterior and interior of buildings in close proximity to the work. Allowing these inspections to take place is voluntary but is encouraged such that we have an accurate record of pre-construction conditions in the unlikely event that damage occurs during construction. 

The Project Team planned these improvements to address both the deteriorated roadway and underground infrastructure on Church Street East as well as to take the opportunity to include enhancements to the road.

The Region's Official Plan gives direction that any new or reconstructed roads include all modes of transportation such as walking, cycling, cars and transit (not applicable for Church Street East).

By including improvements to vehicular, cycling and pedestrian facilities, the planning of this project supports the Regional Transportation Master Plan (RTMP) goals of optimizing our transportation system, promoting transportation choice and supporting sustainable development.