Summit Circle naturalization project: beginning of work

The City of Westmount will begin work on the planned naturalization and reforestation of a portion of Summit Circle. The project will begin during the week of October 8th and will be carried out in several phases. Work will be suspended over the winter, between December 2016 and the spring of 2017 but the project will be completed in 2017.

The objective of the project is to re-naturalize the now-closed section of Summit Circle, thus connecting the north and south flank of Summit Woods and returning the area to its original vocation as an urban forest. Existing pavement will be removed and a smaller, permeable walking path will be installed in its place. Vehicle access will be restricted to emergency vehicles only.

The project includes:

• the replacement of the paved road with a porous surface;
• the removal of existing road signage, vehicle guard rails and concrete planters;
• the installation of a walking path made of a permeable material;
• the installation of bollards to restrict vehicle access;
• the creation of entrances into this area from Oakland Avenue and Summit Circle;
• the reduction of overall luminosity in the area, including the removal of existing street lights and the installation of lit and reflective bollards in strategic locations;
• the reforestation of path borders, resulting in 2,300 square meters of newly-forested land;
• the construction of a simple, natural stone viewpoint facing Mount Royal;
• landscaping using natural bio-swales to reduce and control erosion.

New vegetation for this project includes approximately 230 medium-sized trees and 3,000 small trees, as well as indigenous grasses and wildflowers. The lamps standards will be replaced with bollards which will ensure that the lighting will be directed downwards and emit a minimum luminosity.