Kevin Berger – Leader Staff
Town of Barrhead councillors passed a motion at their July 9 meeting to donate the downtown traffic lights to the Barrhead Chamber of Commerce and the Main Street Merchants Association so they can use it in a fundraiser.
Back in May, town council voted 5-2 to remove the traffic lights at the intersection of 51 Avenue and 50 Street. They were later replaced with a four-way stop.
Mayor Dave McKenzie said that when the lights were removed, he had approached both organizations about donating the lights to raffle off or to sell as a fundraiser for their activities, as the town really has no use for them.
“The Chamber and the Main Street Merchants are always looking for some type of unique fundraiser,” he said, adding that traffic lights are sometimes sought out as decorations for sports bars and the like.
Both groups indicated they would be very much interested in receiving the lights, said McKenzie.
Incidentally, he noted some individuals had actually approached him about purchasing the lights for their businesses.
“I think it’s a good idea for a fundraiser for the business community to do,” said Coun. Dausen Kluin, adding he would like to see the lights stay in the community.
While no one objected to McKenzie’s proposal, Coun. Rod Klumph raised a concern with the height of the stop signs at the downtown intersection.
He said that as he travelled towards the intersection, he could “barely see” the stop sign. Klumph asked if they could be raised up to make them more visible.
McKenzie said the signs are at the height recommended by Alberta Transportation, although the town was not required to adhere to them.
McKenzie added that while anyone approaching an intersection should be watching out for traffic signs or traffic control devices, he had also noticed a visibility issue with the signs.
“I think what was bothering me was the vehicles parking closely to (the sign),” Klumph said.
“I noticed a van was parked there and I could just barely see the top of the sign as I was approaching.”
While he knew personally that the stop sign was there, someone else who is from out of town would be surprised by it.
McKenzie suggested the town look at highlighting the crosswalk with more reflective paint. Klumph added that the town could actually add the words “STOP” in the street.
