1 way out: residents frustrated in Regina's Hawkstone neighbourhood

An extremely busy stretch of road, combined with a neighbourhood with only one entrance, has some people in that Regina neighbourhood concerned.
 
The Hawkstone neighbourhood is located at the eastern end of Rochdale Boulevard. But the only way to get there is past the shopping centre at the southeast corner of Rochdale and Pasqua street. There are only two exits, both uncontrolled, out of the busy parking lot, and most drivers have to turn left across traffic.
 
This is a frustration for both shoppers, and people who live in Hawkstone.
 
Katelyn Betker has lived in Hawkstone for almost two years.
 
“To get in and out, sometimes you almost have to drive with your hand on the horn because it gets quite bad trying to get past the Walmart parking lot.”
 
But it can also be dangerous. In December there were three crashes involving vehicles coming out of that parking lot in a single week. It blocked traffic into Hawkstone as the crash was cleaned up.
 
That’s a safety concern for Betker.
 
“If there was a need for an emergency vehicle to come in (to the neighbourhood), and let’s say there was a collision or something blocking the traffic, there’s not much you could do about it.”
 
She said she knew there was only one entrance when she moved in, but it wasn’t supposed to stay that way.
 
“We were under the impression that it would be happening soon … we decided ‘oh, it’s fine, we can live with one exit for a while.’ But we didn’t realize that no exits would be being built.”
 
Allison Hahn has lived in Hawkstone for about a year. She said they also thought an exit was being built soon. She said it not being done is frustrating.
 
“Almost every day when I’m going home from work, I know there’s an alternate route I could take if that road was open, and I know it would alleviate a lot of stress.”
 
The plan is for Rochdale Boulevard’s lanes to be expanded, and for Argyle Street to be extended up to meet Rochdale. But the city said the timeline for those projects is to be finished within two years.
 
Because the neighbourhood is still being built, there is currently no bylaw against their only being one access.
 
Mayor Michael Fougere called the problem “growing pains”.
 
He emphasized the Hawkstone development, on which construction began in 2012, is being held to the same requirements as every other development in Regina.
 
“I don’t want to downplay the concerns (residents) have, because they are valid,” said Fougere.
 
He explained a set of traffic lights are being put up this year at Rochdale and Vanstone, at the east exit out of the shopping centre parking lot.
 
“That will help some of the traffic flow,” said Fougere.
 
He said the project is developer driven, and said he hopes to see the second exit from the neighbourhood start soon.
 
The long timeline for the second exit won’t help people who have already been waiting years.
 
“It’s easy to say that the single road isn’t a big deal until you have a close call at the exact same spot every day while driving home,” said Hahn.