Petawawa will continue to grow in 2023 with a number of projects planned. Mayor Gary Serviss provided an update for various departments in a recent interview with myFM.
Serviss tells our newsroom “I’m excited to hit the ground running in 2023.”
Budget deliberations will start this week and the Mayor says “we’ll be able to tell all our departments what they have and what they are able to spend and that’s when the real work will start.”
Serviss says they are excited about all of the initiatives that are coming forward from each of the departments.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Serviss says work on the 96 townhouse unit subdivision off of Town Centre Boulevard will continue in 2023 with two other subdivisions moving into the final phases. The Petawawa Mayor also talked plans for two apartment buildings behind Boston Pizza and the development of a Food Basics. While ground work on the 27,000 square foot grocery store was supposed to start in the fall of 2022, Serviss says they hope to see construction begin once the snow melts. The Mayor says Petawawa will also complete their official plan update in 2023.
PUBLIC WORKS
In 2023, the Town of Petawawa public works department will receive a new plow truck and sidewalk trackless unit. Serviss says they are looking forward to an addition on the public works building. The Petawawa Mayor says the public works department will do four in-house projects in 2023 which includes design work and construction and will save the town money. The in-house projects will be along Industrial Avenue, Sack Road, Florence Street and a portion of Black Bay Road. The Mayor says work will also continue further down Portage Road.
FIRE DEPARTMENT
With new mandatory certification required for volunteers firefighters, the Mayor of Petawawa says that will be a priority this year. Serviss says the fire department will also be working on a master fire plan for the town, receive a new watercraft and complete surface water rescue training.
COMMUNITY SERVICES
The Community Services department is looking forward to a number of events, including Cabin Fever which is currently underway. Serviss says in 2023 the Water and Dirt Festival will expand from eight events to sixteen events and take place over three weekend instead of two. The Cooking it Forward program in Petawawa, which brings in young kids, teaches them how to food with food going to the local food bank, is also expanding and. The Mayor says this year the town will complete the new comfort station along the Algonquin Trail, modernize the Petawawa mini-putt course and work to improve active transportation and trails.
(written by: Rudy Kadlec)