General Urban Kitchener Updates and Rumours

[SF22]

Items from today's Ontario Budget that mention "Kitchener"

Building Highways, Transit and Infrastructure Projects
We are building new highways, roads, schools, hospitals, long‐term care homes and transit.
From Uxbridge to Kitchener‐Waterloo, we are building and redeveloping hospitals, and from
Pickering to Ottawa to Atikokan to Windsor, we are building new schools.

Building the New Highway 7
The next phase of construction for the new Highway 7 between Kitchener and Guelph will provide
relief to the gridlocked Highway 401 and connect the fast‐growing urban centres of Kitchener,
Waterloo and Guelph. Design of the Frederick Street bridge replacement is well underway with
utility work targeted to begin in 2023.

Building GO Transit
Kitchener GO Rail Extension: Following its
contract award in May 2022, Metrolinx has
begun work on Guelph Central GO Station to
construct a second platform, a new storage track for maintenance vehicles and a passing track

Building Hospitals
As part of its plan to build a more connected and convenient health care system, the government is
implementing the most ambitious plan for hospital expansion in Ontario’s history, investing over
$48 billion over the next 10 years in hospital infrastructure, including over $32 billion in hospital
capital grants. This includes supporting more than 50 hospital projects that would add 3,000 new
beds over 10 years to increase access to reliable, quality care. Recent milestones include:
 Grand River Hospital and St. Mary’s General Hospital Joint Redevelopment Project:
The 2022 Budget announced the planning of the Grand River Hospital and St. Mary’s General
Hospital Joint Redevelopment Project to construct a new, joint acute care facility and expand
existing facilities in the Kitchener‐Waterloo region.

Implementation and construction of a multi-use trail to
connect residents from the Iron Horse Trail with the
future Transit hub in Kitchener and Waterloo.

I wonder if the MUT connection to the Iron Horse Trail is just regarding the spot where it needs to cross the train tracks. I think the rest of the connection (from the hub to Joseph St, and then Stewart St through to the IHT) is complete or under construction. I know that the tracks are outside of the city's/region's purview.

Glad to see progress continues on the GO expansion, even if it is Slow As Heck.

I do wonder where a new hospital facility will be built. Seems like it should be somewhere along the LRT line for accessibility reasons; I hope they find a good space that isn't on the outskirts of town. The empty lot on Northfield across from the Northfield Station might be alright, or even on Wes Graham Way directly across from the R&T stop.