Leamington's mayor is pleased an environmental assessment is underway on a stretch of County Rd. 20, but isn't impressed with how long it's taken to get this far.
"[Leamington and Kingsville] are totally frustrated with the county's action on this," says Mayor John Paterson.
Paterson says the two towns have been trying to get work started on a multi-use trail under the County Wide Active Transportation Study between the two towns for years, but there was little point building the trail when the road was in such bad shape.
The stretch in question is on County Rd. 20 between Sherk St. in Leamington and Kratz Sideroad in Kingsville.
"The road and the curbing is in such disrepair, it's just an embarrassment," says Paterson. "It is a county road. It's their responsibility to take care of it."
That didn't stop Leamington from making an offer to fix the curbing until a costing report suggested the price would be more than $2-million, "way out of [Leamington's] reach."
The environmental assessment, which should finish in August, will look at capacity with consideration to vehicular, cyclist and pedestrian traffic, deficiencies and projected needs in the area over the next 20 years.
After that, Essex County Council will decide what comes next for County Rd. 20.