Kamloops council has voted to rip up part of McGill Road to move utilities and repave it, between Dalhousie Drive and Columbia Street West.

Staff say the asphalt is in need of repair this year, and it comes as a developer in “The Reach” neighborhood of Thompson Rivers University will be ripping up part of the road to move utilities to support a future project, at the corner of McGill Road and Summit Drive, which that developer will pay for.

Councillor Mike O’Reilly says city crews aligning their work with the developer, when part of the road is already going to be ripped up, will save the city time and money.

“When we talk about not disrupting people’s lives, I think this will have a great impact on that. And not just vehicles, but the people walking and the people using bikes through that corridor, to do this once instead of doing it again in five or 10 years, this will save a lot of pain over the long term.”

The city’s portion of the work will cost $1.43 million dollars, to be paid for from reserves, and will happen between May and November.

Further details of the cost and scope of the work that the developer is doing at “The Reach,” are not immediately clear.