The opening of the 68th Avenue Twinning Project was marked with an official ribbon cutting ceremony on the morning of September 6, 2017. Beairsto & Associates Engineering Ltd. (BASE) were the engineering consultants on the project and were joined by members of City Council, as well as the road contractors (Knelsen Sand & Gravel), and the bridge contractors (EICI) for the event.
The engineering on this project began in 2015 and included twinning of the existing road, converting a portion from rural cross-section to urban, upgrading the storm sewer, remediation of the bear creek bank slope, more pedestrian multi-use trails, upgrading traffic signals, stamped and colored concrete medians, berms on either side of the road, and the addition of over 300 trees. The road has been open to traffic since August 19, 2017, although landscaping, sign restoration and other minor work still needs to be completed throughout the remainder of this construction season. Stantec and EICI were responsible for the bridge twinning. The overall cost of both project components was approximately $17 million.
Ribbon Cutting Picture (left to right): Councillor Thiessen, Councillor Radbourne, Councillor Clayton, Mayor Given, Councillor McLean, Daniel Dawson (project manager) and Councillor O’Toole.