January 21, 2010 08:08 AM
David Fleischer
If the region is determined to rename Hwy. 7, they should try to come up with something snazzier than Avenue 7.
That seemed to be the consensus from residents who weighed in online and a public meeting in Richmond Hill last night.
Names suggested by attendees ranged from the royal (Prince William or Dominion Boulevard) and metaphorical (Union Street) to the adventurous (Electric Avenue, after the nearby hydro corridor).
But the meeting's facilitator and consultant Jim Faught reminded people the renaming it a serious process.
"This will be a legacy name that could be around for 500 years," he said.
The region's position is that the road isn't really a highway anymore and as intensified neighbourhoods grow in Vaughan, Richmond Hill and Markham, it needs a new name to reflect that.
Some of the transformation that's going to occur in the next 20 or 30 years is already beginning to happen, regional director of infrastructure planning Loy Cheah said.
"The vision for Hwy. 7 is going to be very different. The three centres will become downtown nodes and become anchors of what will transform Hwy. 7," Mr. Cheah said.
As far off as that level of urbanization may seem, construction in Markham Centre is underway and within five years Viva rapid transit and the TTC subway will intersect at Jane Street.
"It's a very nice vision," said Vaughan resident Maxine Povering, adding she came into the meeting prepared to reject the renaming idea as unnecessary.
However, her vote would be for Boulevard 7.
"It has to be a significant name that will put all three communities on the map ... the name is everything," she said.
Other attendees at Tuesday's meeting suggested names commemorating important personalities.
Another consistent theme was how odd it would be to have Avenue 7 running between 14th Avenue and 16th Avenue in Markham.
"It just seems to be out of joint," said Richmond Hill Ward 6 Councillor Godwin Chan who attended along with Regional Councillor Vito Spatafora.
Hwy. 7 runs from Sarnia to Ottawa but many sections, including the 42 kilometres in York Region, were downloaded to municipalities in the 1990s.
The York Region stretch was primarily created along the 15th Concession but no one went as far as suggesting a change to the more historically correct 15th Avenue.
A segment in Markham was once known as Wellington Street but a similarly named road in Aurora makes a revival of that name unlikely.
Richmond Hill resident Anthony De Fazio wondered why so much effort was put into something with no apparent value.
"It seems totally unnecessary. It's a total waste of time and money," he said.
Everyone knows where and what Hwy. 7 is and a nice, new name won't change its character, he said.
A cost-benefit analysis showing what kind of development will be attracted by the new name would be helpful, Mr. Chan suggested.
The cost for the change is not yet known, but many of the new road signs would be replaced anyway as Viva's rapidways come online, project manager Lizuarte Simas said.
Any change would also be phased in, allowing businesses to keep old stationary until it runs out.
More than 100 people have already replied to the online surve and most comments were negative, Mr. Faught said.
All three chambers of commerce were contacted and a report that includes all comments will go to regional council before any decision is made.
Whether you hope to rock down to Electric Avenue or amble down Avenue 7, you can still reply to the region's two survey questions by following the link at
www.york.ca
