Residents of Duncan’s Pine Avenue are worried about children’s safety in their neighbourhood on Halloween night.
Ongoing road work on the avenue has seen trenches dug to allow sidewalks and curbs to be laid, and some residents are concerned that they will be a hazard to children on Halloween.
The trenches are between one and two feet deep in some places, and the fear is that the kids, many of whom will have their vision obscured with Halloween masks, could fall into them.
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Julie Zapf said the neighbourhood is popular on Halloween, and many parents who are not from the area often drop their kids off there due to the rich variety of candies and treats that are often offered at the homes.
“It’s not unusual to see hundreds of children on our street on Halloween, so we want to know what the plan is to ensure their safety on Thursday evening,” she said.
“There doesn’t seem to be any plans in place.”
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Emmet McCusker, the City of Duncan’s director of public works and development services, suggested that trick-or-treaters and their parents pick another location on Thursday night.
“I totally understand that kids want to go trick-or-treating and I don’t want to disappoint anyone, but this is a construction site and it’s likely not going to be safe for kids at night for the next few weeks,” McCusker said.
“Construction signs have been posted by Leuco Construction, which is doing the work, but there’s nothing that can be done to make it safe for kids in time for Halloween.”
McCusker said the construction company has been replacing utilities, including water mains, and doing repairs to the areas’s sewage systems and drainage works and is now preparing to replace the sidewalks and curbs on Pine Avenue.
“There’s still a lot of work to be done, and we expect the project won’t be completed until the middle or end of November,” he said.
robert.barron@cowichanvalleycitizen.com
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