Mayor Ted Nebbeling feels a signal light at the intersection of Blueberry Drive and Highway 99 is about to become a reality, following his meeting this week with a Ministry of Highways regional manager. "I feel confident they will approve a signal now," Nebbeling said Wednesday. Nebbeling is expecting to hear back from the regional manager in about two weeks and the signal light could be up and running within another week. With the installation of the signal the gate at the north end of Blueberry Drive would remain closed. "The Blueberry gate is not a viable alternative and there is no network road plan or connection through there," Nebbeling added. The signal light will cost approximately $100,000, a price which the municipality has said it would pay. Some of the work, including wiring under the highway, is already done. The municipality has the light standards now. Nebbeling noted that it was a two year fight with an area manager at the Ministry of Highways to get the left turn lane into the Meadow Park Sports Centre. He described that process as one where "the community was held hostage." However, talks with the regional manager went much better. "We talked about our long-term plans, the dedication of the bypass route, about how the present highway will eventually become a municipal road and about community values, and he indicated he understood," Nebbeling said. He added, a letter from the Minister of Highways urging a common sense approach helped. At a public information meeting on the Blueberry Drive/Highway 99 intersection in December there was unanimous support among Alta Vista and Blueberry residents for a signal light at the intersection. Residents remained divided, however, over whether to open the gate on Blueberry Drive, which would allow traffic from the two subdivisions to get to Lorimer Road and Myrtle Philp school without using the highway.
