Downtown Chatham BIA Chair Paul Shettell, January 12, 2016 (Photo by Jake Kislinsky)Downtown Chatham BIA Chair Paul Shettell, January 12, 2016 (Photo by Jake Kislinsky)
Chatham

Chatham BIA Wants Streetscape Money

The Downtown Chatham BIA is one of the first local organizations to appeal for funding in the 2016 CK budget.

Chair Paul Shettell says they're looking for the municipality to pay for an engineering study needed for the Downtown Chatham Streetscape project. He adds the study could cost more than $500,000.

"We're trying to think long term for the International Plowing Match, when hundreds of thousands of people come to Chatham-Kent," he says. "We just want dowtown to look better."

Shettell adds the money for the study has been moved around the capital budget and reallocated for many years, but the project is long overdue.

"It comes down to council to decide 'Do we move forward with something, or is it going to gather dust?' The last time downtown Chatham was done was the early 80s."

The Blenheim Rotary Club has also approached council to share the operating costs of Talbot Trail Place.  CK budget deliberations get underway on January 26.

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