Rendering of an example roundabout at Erie St. & Parent Avenue

Windsor City Council gave preliminary approvals for a project by the Via Italia Business Improvement Area to green and beautify Erie Street.

The “La Bella Strada” project will be a LEED Certified outdoor cafe-oriented setting styled with “old country” elements, free onstreet parking (subject to future approvals) and will feature an incredibly ‘greened’ stretch of roadway with hundreds of additional trees and flower planters.

Roundabouts will be used for traffic calming, the roadway will be repaved in coloured concrete and the road will be narrowed to allow for extended sidewalk patios.

Consideration was given to the removal of bike lanes on Erie Street in order to accommodate this project – one suggested solution is to reconfigure Giles Boulevard to include bike lanes.

The project will also impact the yearly Tour di Via Italia bike race, however solutions are expected to be in place to adjust the course.

The La Bella Strada project will be back before City Council in the future to discuss specific funding questions.

Check out this video/promotion of the project, produced by Marshall Sfalcin: