Georgina anticipates highway expansion: EXTENDING OPPORTUNITIES

NRU
July 23, 2014
Edward LaRusic

For the Town of Georgina, the upcoming Highway 404 expansion means more than a shorter commute to work. It offers significant potential for economic opportunities.

Ward 1 councillor Naomi Davison told NRU that the town has been waiting 20 years for this extension to happen.

“It’s about time. This community has been told ‘it’s five years away’ for about the last 25 to 30 years… now it’s probably five weeks [away].”

The highway extension will bring Highway 404 13 kilometers north from the Town of Newmarket through the Town of East Gwillimbury and up to the Georgina municipal border at Ravenshoe Road, just south of Keswick.

Davison noted that the overall effect on commuting may not seem that large, maybe shaving off “five to seven minutes” each way, but an extra 10 to 15 minutes can mean a lot to a family.

Georgina mayor Rob Grossi said the arrival of the 404 will be “big news” for the town. He said the town has planned its major employment area—roughly 600 acres of land in the Keswick Business Park Secondary Plan—to help take advantage of the new highway.

“The essence as to tie our employment lands to our residential lands, and bring them together for the purpose of a balance in the community.”

Davison added that with new employment opportunities will give residents a chance to work within the municipality.

“It can mean the drop of a commute that’s normally an hour and a half…[Georgina] is one of the only places in York Region where it’s still affordable to buy a home. People who are coming here would really like to work here as well.”

Grossi also noted that the highway will help boost, not only Keswick, but Sutton as well.

“Sutton becomes to Keswick, as Keswick was to Newmarket. With the 404 coming to Keswick, Sutton is then your [housing] alternative. It’s a little further away, maybe a little bit better in terms of value.”

Barring the unforeseen, it is all going to happen soon. Ontario Ministry of Transportation communications coordinator Astrid Poei said the highway is anticipated to be open for traffic in September.