Hawkesbury Council has adopted a connecting link agreement with the United Counties of Prescott and Russell (UCPR) for Main Street within the town limits.
A special council meeting was held on Thursday, July 16 where the connecting link agreement was adopted. UCPR Council had already adopted the agreement when it last met on June 24.
Under the agreement, the 3.3 kilometres of Main Street between the east and west sections of Front Road/County Road 4 will remain under Town of Hawkesbury jurisdiction but the costs of capital improvement will be shared between the UCPR and the Town. The agreement does not include the costs of regular maintenance such as winter snow removal.
For future reconstruction work on Main Street West, which extends from McGill Street to the western town limit, the UCPR will pay for paving for a width of up to 9.3 metres and 25 per cent of the storm sewer rehabilitation costs. Under this arrangement, the UCPR would pay $120,000 for the asphalt pavement, $79,000 for asphalt milling, and $468,000 or 25 per cent of the estimated $1,870,000 storm sewer replacement work.
For future work on Main Street East, which extends from McGill Street to Tupper Street, the UCPR will contribute 50 per cent of the cost for 9.3 metres wide of pavement and the Town of Hawkesbury would cover the remainder. If storm sewer replacement is required, the UCPR would pay 25 per cent of the cost.
Hawkesbury is the only municipality within the UCPR that does not have a fully designated county road within its boundaries. However, Hawkesbury Council has long contented that Main Street forms an important regional road link. In April 2025, Hawkesbury Council adopted a resolution requesting the UCPR assume the entire street as a county road. However, UCPR Council instead decided further discussions were required and other options should be considered. The result is the current agreement.
Councillor Jeanne Charlebois said she is pleased about the connecting link agreement for Main Street being reached between the Town and the UCPR. She expressed appreciation for the work done by Mayor Robert Lefebvre and staff to achieve the agreement.
Councillor Tony Tsourounakis also thanked Lefebvre and noted how it was his initiative.
“He went to bat for Hawkesbury. We’re the only municipality without a county road,” Tsourounakis said.
Connecting link agreements between regional governments and municipalities for road construction exist in communities across Ontario. The Ministry of Transportation also has connecting link agreements with municipalities in many communities where provincial highways use major streets. Locally, these agreements exist in Hawkesbury and Vankleek Hill for Highway 34.
