Decision on closing down Sixth Avenue delayed

Calgary city council will wait three weeks before deciding whether to shut down Sixth Avenue to allow construction of EnCana's new $1-billion headquarters.

The city is looking at shutting downthe major west route through downtown — Sixth Avenue between Centre Street and First StreetSE — for utility upgrades and the construction of an underground parking lot for the Bow office tower.

An estimated 22,000 drivers use that stretch every day.

Mayor Dave Bronconnier said Mondayhe wanted to put off the decision until April because hediscovered other streets and avenues would likely also be involved.

Councilordered a report, which will come back to the aldermen on April 16, that will showwhich street closures the utilities will require to hook the building up and what impact other construction projects, both underway and planned, will have on downtown traffic.

Graeme Duff, the man in charge of building the Bow, said the company needed the shutdown approval quickly if it was to have the street completely re-opened in time for the Stampede parade next year.

"Now we're going to lose three weeks of not knowing whether it's going ahead or some other alternative needs to be planned," Duff said.

Bronconnier says the builders have no one to blame but themselves.

"I think before we just give a carte blanche approval the developer here has to get his act together so we know exactly what is the proposal, what is the time line," Bronconnier said.