General University Area Updates and Rumours

[ijmorlan]

I’ve been hoping for a local Signage for a while! I hope this one has all the same stuff as the other stores.

[CP42]

I’ve been hoping for a local Signage for a while! I hope this one has all the same stuff as the other stores.

It would be nice if a barber shop went in

[rickhd]

Noticed some digging at the back of the former Manulife site on Weber. Perhaps cleaning up the site.

I believe there was some sort of bomb factory on the site during World War 2. So I imagine there is a lot of nasty stuff underground.

[panamaniac]

Noticed some digging at the back of the former Manulife site on Weber.  Perhaps cleaning up the site. 

I believe there was some sort of bomb factory on the site during World War 2.    So I imagine there is a lot of nasty stuff underground.

The Sunshine Mfg Co. made bombs during WWII, but the factory was on Sunshine Ave, between Erb and what is now Lutherwood Village.

[ac3r]

If there is anything underground I would think they'd have removed it over the last century-ish, prior to building the mall and building the Manulife offices occupied.

[KevinL]

If there is anything underground I would think they'd have removed it over the last century-ish, prior to building the mall and building the Manulife offices occupied.

They mean the vacant site at 380 Weber North.

[kps]

I believe there was some sort of bomb factory on the site during World War 2. So I imagine there is a lot of nasty stuff underground.

There was nothing around but fields until 1960ish when Weber was extended from Bridgeport Rd to King.

[danbrotherston]

I believe there was some sort of bomb factory on the site during World War 2. So I imagine there is a lot of nasty stuff underground.

There was nothing around but fields until 1960ish when Weber was extended from Bridgeport Rd to King.

Wait...

Weber St. was made to meet a parallel street in the 60s? I was always told that this was an original Mennonite route which is why they make no sense.

Well...I didn't need another reason to hate 60's traffic planners, but they've give me one.

[ijmorlan]

Weber St. was made to meet a parallel street in the 60s? I was always told that this was an original Mennonite route which is why they make no sense.

Well...I didn't need another reason to hate 60's traffic planners, but they've give me one.

Some of our weird roads are literally cart tracks. Others are planned that way. In other cases, multiple segments have been combined into single routes by building connecting pieces. Fischer-Hallman Road is like that; it’s really Fischer Road, plus Hallman Road, plus new construction between I think just north of Glasgow down to Highland. There even at one time (might still be) one road sign which said “Fischer/Hallman Rd.” (slash, not dash). Erbsville/Ira Needles/Trussler is another example, and Westmount has sections that are over a hundred years old, others built in the ’60s, and others built in the last 20 or so years. All paved or re-paved much more recently that the ’60s, of course.

[SF22]

Weber St. was made to meet a parallel street in the 60s? I was always told that this was an original Mennonite route which is why they make no sense.

Well...I didn't need another reason to hate 60's traffic planners, but they've give me one.

Some of our weird roads are literally cart tracks. Others are planned that way. In other cases, multiple segments have been combined into single routes by building connecting pieces. Fischer-Hallman Road is like that; it’s really Fischer Road, plus Hallman Road, plus new construction between I think just north of Glasgow down to Highland. There even at one time (might still be) one road sign which said “Fischer/Hallman Rd.” (slash, not dash). Erbsville/Ira Needles/Trussler is another example, and Westmount has sections that are over a hundred years old, others built in the ’60s, and others built in the last 20 or so years. All paved or re-paved much more recently that the ’60s, of course.

Park/Jubilee/Courtland/Fairway/Kossuth is one of my favourite examples of local roads having been stitched together over the years. You can get from Park/William all the way out to Kossuth/Hespeler (Highway 24) without ever turning off the street you're driving on, for a total of 22km.

[danbrotherston]

Some of our weird roads are literally cart tracks. Others are planned that way. In other cases, multiple segments have been combined into single routes by building connecting pieces. Fischer-Hallman Road is like that; it’s really Fischer Road, plus Hallman Road, plus new construction between I think just north of Glasgow down to Highland. There even at one time (might still be) one road sign which said “Fischer/Hallman Rd.” (slash, not dash). Erbsville/Ira Needles/Trussler is another example, and Westmount has sections that are over a hundred years old, others built in the ’60s, and others built in the last 20 or so years. All paved or re-paved much more recently that the ’60s, of course.

Park/Jubilee/Courtland/Fairway/Kossuth is one of my favourite examples of local roads having been stitched together over the years. You can get from Park/William all the way out to Kossuth/Hespeler (Highway 24) without ever turning off the street you're driving on, for a total of 22km.

Nah, far better was Caroline->Erb->Bridgeport->Riverbend->Shirley->Lackner->Fairway Cres->Idle Creek

Basically head south in Kitchener, never put on a turn signal, end up heading south in Waterloo 7 km to the north.

Except it's ruined now because of the provinces work on Shirley Ave.

That being said, I don't think these are the same, connecting roads like this doesn't create the same confusion that having roads with the same two names travelling parallel but also intersecting multiple times.

[timc]

Wait...

Weber St. was made to meet a parallel street in the 60s? I was always told that this was an original Mennonite route which is why they make no sense.

Well...I didn't need another reason to hate 60's traffic planners, but they've give me one.

I wouldn't say that Weber and King were parallel. They kind of go in the same direction, yes, but Weber runs more parallel to Albert Street. But then that gets messed up north of Columbia, and Weber becomes the old alignment of Albert Street. I have no idea why.

[KevinL]

Fischer-Hallman Road is like that; it’s really Fischer Road, plus Hallman Road... and Westmount has sections that are over a hundred years old...

Funny you mention both Fischer-Hallman and Westmount; as F-H south of Bleams used to BE Westmount. About 20 years ago the section south of Ottawa was put in, and Westmount was terminated at F-H instead of its former direct orientaiton.

[nms]

I wouldn't say that Weber and King were parallel. They kind of go in the same direction, yes, but Weber runs more parallel to Albert Street. But then that gets messed up north of Columbia, and Weber becomes the old alignment of Albert Street. I have no idea why.

Albert St was the old alternate route north to St Jacobs from Waterloo (see 'Old Albert St' tucked behind the Albert McCormick Arena). King St existed from Waterloo to St. Jacobs existed in the 1930s. Weber St likely offered the option for a four lane road all the way from Kitchener to North Waterloo without having to worry about the residential neighbourhood around Wilfrid Laurier University and the awkwardness of how Albert St might connect to King St at it's southern end.

[SF22]

Have there ever been any rumours of UW deciding to build a parking garage to free up some land for new buildings? The East Campus area at Phillip/Columbia have 5 buildings in a sea of surface parking, literally right north of the UW LRT stop. There are the two massive student lots at Seagram/University that are also right beside the Waterloo Park LRT stop, and right next to their existing student residences that they are actively growing (ie: the new indigenous-inspired res).  There is a ton of UW surface parking in the R&T Park that is for students; when you look at the parking to building ratio up there, it's kind of ridiculous.

At some point, they're going to need to scrap some surface lots, right??