Coun. Ranj Pillai wants a city-wide vote on the question of whether to proceed with a road crossing McIntyre Creek from Porter Creek to the Alaska Highway.

The councillor also wants to postpone the decision on the hotly contested question of whether the city should proceed with residential development in an area adjacent to McIntyre Creek.

Pillai said in an interview this week the current debate over the Porter Creek D residential proposal is fairly isolated.

On one side, he said, is the pro-development special interest sector and on the other side the community organizations and neighbourhood associations opposed to losing what they consider to be an important wilderness and recreational area.

City council is scheduled to vote Monday night on whether to advance the residential development and the Pine Street road extension to the pre-planning and pre-engineering stage.

Pillai said he has every reason to believe a motion will come forward at Monday's meeting asking city council to postpone a decision, and he will be supporting a postponement.

"So when we talk about Porter Creek D development, at the end of the day, do I think delaying the decision-making process by 30 days to 120 days is going to have an effect on what people are going to buy houses for, no, I do not,” he said.

"I am in support of, like I have said all along, in support of developing Porter Creek D,” the councillor said.

"But I would like some of the entities and adjacent neighbourhood associations to feel as though they have been appropriately consulted.”

The working group organized by the city to guide the Porter Creek D discussion fell apart last month with accusations from community organizations that the city had them there as window dressing.

City staff maintain the city's approach has been thorough and objective, and it has

conducted the necessary research to make an informed decision. Staff are recommending council proceed with the development proposal.

Pillai said the question of a road across McIntyre Creek is a whole different matter in his mind.

The issue is of such significance that it deserves a city-wide plebiscite – a non-binding vote – to help city council get a better handle on how residents – all residents– feel, he said.

City staff have pointed out the 2009 transportation study recommends extending Pine Street to help manage the flow of traffic when the population hits 25,000, with or without the new Whistle Bend development.

The Pine Street extension with a connection to the traffic circle on Mountainview Drive has, however, also been identified in the Whistle Bend development as a preferable option to help move traffic over the Alaska Highway.

Pillai said the questions about extending Pine Street are not just about whether to build a road across McIntyre Creek, or what it would cost, who will pay for it.

At the very least, it's about what Whitehorse residents think about it, given there will be some significant impacts either way when the Whistle Bend subdivision starts to open up next year, he said.

Pillai said even now, on a busy morning, traffic on the Alaska Highway can be backed up from the lights at the top of Two Mile Hill to the Bethany Church.

Rerouting more traffic from Whistle Bend and Porter Creek to an intersection at the Kopper King could back things up to Rabbit's Foot Canyon, he said.

"I'm not being dramatic.”

Pillai said even as a councillor in the loop, he's been learning new information over the last couple of months, so he expects there are still some unanswered questions among the general public.

The transportation study mentions having to make Mountainview a four-lane artery at some point regardless, he pointed out, adding maybe it should be done sooner rather than later.

He said there's been talk of twinning 12th Avenue or Wann Road to facilitate traffic flow out of Porter Creek and Whistle Bend.

Perhaps, suggested Pillai, council would do well to take a time out and canvass what the electors have to say about the transportation options. The cost of a plebiscite would likely be somewhere around a modest $15,000, but the information will be invaluable, he said.

The councillor said it's also high time to start talking about another bridge across the Yukon River to reroute traffic flow down the Long Lake Road.

However the city decides to proceed with road improvements today, it's inevitable

bottlenecks will eventually be created at the bottom of Two Mile Hill and at the bottom of the hill on Mountainview Drive, he said.

Pillai said its better to start talking now about another access route to the downtown rather than 10 years from now.

And yes, he acknowledged, before the city can hold a plebiscite on traffic preferences, it has to provide some essential information: is it even possible to twin 12th or Wann, for instance?

Pillai said there's also a need for more information regarding the general state of housing in the city.

Everybody knows there's a shortage, but it's not very clear what type of housing the city is short of, and just how short it is, he said.

Pillai said he favours the establishment of needs-registry over the next 24 months to refine what type of housing the city requires.

Not everybody moving to the Yukon can afford to buy single-family homes, and not everybody wants one, he said.

Pillai said foreign workers arriving every in the Yukon every year don't all land in Whitehorse looking for a house.

Having a needs assessment compiled over the next 24 months using one-on-one surveys of city residents will help achieve a better understanding of what type of housing the city should be targeting in the future.

It could be that phase three of the new Whistle Bend development should be geared more toward multi-family living, he said.

The councillor said the city could ensure maximum participation in a needs assessment by putting up a free Whistle Bend lot for a draw among the names of all those who participated.

It might cost $100,000 for the lot, but again, the quality of information would be invaluable, he said, suggesting with a free lot up for grabs, participation in a needs survey would be high.

After all, said Pillai, right now there's really no clear understanding of how crucial the Porter Creek D development is right now, or if it is crucial at all.

Either way, the councillor said, he's not afraid the sky would fall if the city steps back to take another look at the Porter Creek D proposal.

And Whistle Bend is, after all, designed to provide urban lots for the next five years or more, Pillai emphasized.

Petition on McIntyre Creek issue rejected in legislature ...