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Conestoga Parkway - ookpik - 12-13-2014
Conestoga Parkway
A thread on Conestoga Parkway (Highways 85, 7, 7/8), including discussion on any construction projects, history and a general discussion about the highway.
Father of expressway explains how it got built
Quote:If you drive the local expressway, say thanks to Bill Thomson. In 1962, Thomson came up with the idea of building an expressway in Kitchener and Waterloo...
We can be glad that he did, and that so many others — politicians, planners, and the public — pursued the concept so doggedly. The expressway, built in five years for $26 million and the first of its kind in Ontario, is a platinum-level success, supporting industry and commuting and travel. Where would we be without it?
Hopefully in 50 years we'll be reading a similar piece in The Record about the LRT.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - panamaniac - 12-13-2014
Interesting piece. I wonder if there is a copy of his book at the KCL?
RE: Conestoga Parkway - Canard - 12-13-2014
That was an excellent article - surprising, given the writer! I really hope Thompson reconsiders, and publishes the book.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - JoeKW - 12-13-2014
Quote:He recalls how some residents ignored billboards, brochures and news reports, bought suburban homes, and were then surprised and angered to discover that they would be living beside an expressway. The kicker — they lived in his neighbourhood. "They made me so cheesed off," he says.
Some things never change.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - Drake - 12-13-2014
$26M is approximately $200M in 2014 dollars. I would say that is a hell of a deal for what is there.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - BuildingScout - 12-13-2014
(12-13-2014, 12:08 PM)Drake Wrote: $26M is approximately $200M in 2014 dollars. I would say that is a hell of a deal for what is there.
It really depends on the multiplier. Using minimum wages it is more like $300M, using real estate values it is more like $800M. Still a hell of a deal.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - greybird - 12-13-2014
Quote:"Some of that was traumatic," he says. He remembers a family heartbroken to lose the handcrafted staircase in the home they built themselves. He remembers parents anguished to be forced from the house where their child had accidentally been killed, run over in the driveway by a milk truck. "It was just terrible because the expressway's on top of that driveway now," he says.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Do not draw any conclusions from this for when similar situations pop up in the future.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - Drake - 12-13-2014
(12-13-2014, 12:23 PM)BuildingScout Wrote:(12-13-2014, 12:08 PM)Drake Wrote: $26M is approximately $200M in 2014 dollars. I would say that is a hell of a deal for what is there.
It really depends on the multiplier. Using minimum wages it is more like $300M, using real estate values it is more like $800M. Still a hell of a deal.
I used the various websites that convert historic dollar values. They all read approx $200M. EG:
http://www.dollartimes.com/inflation/inflation.php?amount=100&year=1962
http://www.davemanuel.com/inflation-calculator.php
http://www.in2013dollars.com/1962-dollars-in-2014?amount=26000000
http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl?cost1=26&year1=1962&year2=2014
RE: Conestoga Parkway - ookpik - 12-13-2014
(12-13-2014, 12:44 PM)Drake Wrote: I used the various websites that convert historic dollar values. They all read approx $200M. EG:The $200M is also consistent with the Bank of Canada's Inflation Calculator.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - The85 - 12-13-2014
(12-13-2014, 12:08 PM)Drake Wrote: $26M is approximately $200M in 2014 dollars. I would say that is a hell of a deal for what is there.
We also need to consider the numerous upgrades that have happened since the original expressway was constructed and add that to the 2014 figure to get the real value.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - mpd618 - 12-13-2014
I wonder if his book addresses the expressway ring concept? It has never been clear to me to what extent that was a real proposal. If it was, I'd love to know what the politics around it were.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - panamaniac - 12-13-2014
I'd have the same question. I remember the construction of the Parkway and can't recall any discussion or plans at the time for a ring road.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - DHLawrence - 12-13-2014
(12-13-2014, 10:18 AM)ookpik Wrote: Hopefully in 50 years we'll be reading a similar piece in The Record about the LRT.
Or even sooner!
RE: Conestoga Parkway - nms - 01-28-2015
If you want to know more about Highway 85/Conestoga Parkway and how it came to be, which also might explain who owns what and why the numbers are the way they are, there is a new book out on the topic. Bill Thomson was interviewed yesterday morning on the CBC and the book is available for sale at Words Worth Books but I can't for the life of me remember the title. I took a look at the book last week in the store and it was full of all sorts of maps and pictures about what was planned, what might have been, and what actually happened.
RE: Conestoga Parkway - Waterlooer - 01-28-2015
The url doesn't work :/ Seems like an interesting book!