At the same time as the repair of the Westminster Avenue bridge was being completed in the fall of 2007, Montreal West also started a wide-ranging inspection of its infrastructure in order to map out a comprehensive three-year program.

"As part of the process, all the sewers and a good portion of the water services of the town have been inspected," Mayor Campbell Stuart said on Monday during a briefing for local media held at the corner of Ballantyne and Nelson avenues where water main replacement work just got underway.

However, according to Stuart, too many other roads and sidewalks in Montreal West require significant upgrading. With this challenge in mind, the town hired the engineering firm Genivar to perform studies and make recommendations to address these issues.

"Our strategy is simple — to solve the historic infrastructure problems so that we can finally get to the point where they can be maintained and renewed in an orderly fashion, and we have the best team to do that."

Montreal West's 2008 infrastructure plan is starting with the replacement of certain sewer and water pipes, along with connecting services, new sidewalks and streets. Some of the work is starting on Sheraton Drive, from Côte St. Luc Road up to 230 Sheraton, and on Ballantyne Avenue North from Northview to Nelson.

Concurrently, the underground wiring along with the support bases for the street lighting is also being replaced. The estimated costs of this part of the plan is $4 million and the work should be completed in July. Similar work will be performed on Ballantyne Avenue North, from Nelson to Curzon, in the fall of 2008, at an estimated cost of $1.3 million.

A project to upgrade the water distribution network, including the replacement or addition of various control valves, as well as the replacement of some of the older hydrants, is set to begin in June at a projected cost of about $310,000. The town's studies have also permitted it to identify those roads and sidewalks which need to be replaced without the necessity of replacing their subterranean infrastructure.

In 2008, the following streets will be repaired and sidewalks replaced where required at an estimated cost of $1.7 million dollars: Northview from the border of NDG to Westminster North; Parkside from Brock North to Northview; Nelson from Brock North to Westminster; Broughton from the border of NDG to Westminster South; Brock South from Avon to Courtney; Courtney from Ballantyne South to Brynmore; Westland including Westland Drive and Westland Place.

According to Stuart, only about $800,000 of the repair program's cost is coming from a federal government gasoline tax refund program for muncipalities. He said Montreal West will be taking on long-term debt to pay for the rest.