Plans for reconstruction of Petersburg’s main intersection call for bike lanes, a sidewalk and raised curbs.

But that doesn’t sit well with some residents of the small village west of Kitchener, including the owner of a popular restaurant and hotel.

Bev Finnegan owns the Blue Moon at the corner of Notre Dame Drive and Snyder’s Road – the intersection being torn up for the reconstruction.

She says the road does need to be rebuilt, but doesn’t understand why her business has to lose 50 of its parking spots to make that happen.

“We could be running out of parking spaces,” she says.

The Blue Moon is licensed to hold 550 patrons, and Finnegan says losing 50 parking spaces may make parking tight – causing some people to stay away from the restaurant and the town altogether.

She also doesn’t look forward to clearing and salting a new sidewalk, but says she is OK with losing the 14 parking spots that block views of the intersection from the Blue Moon’s patio.

A petition against the plan gathered nearly 1,000 signatures.

One name not on that petition was Warren Bechthold, owner of Bechthold Home Improvements.

Bechthold says he’s in favour of the planned changes because it’s a rare chance to see his taxes spent in his home community – and, more importantly, for safety issues.

“There’s no place now for people to walk safely in the wintertime,” he says of the intersection’s current configuration.

“Nobody’s been hit yet, but why take the chance?”

A public meeting on the issue will be held Feb. 18 in Petersburg.