Highway 14 traffic has always whizzed by the southern wall of the pub within a few metres but all that is going to change.
The new highway will take an arc north of the 17 Mile for a four-lane stretch to Glinz Lake Road, removing dangerous curves and the difficult turn onto Gillespie Road. The improvements are also expected to trim commute times for Sooke’s growing population.
The current route past the pub will be repurposed as an extension to Connie Road. A westbound exit off the new highway will loop northeast of the 17 Mile around a pond and continue through an underpass beneath the new highway to provide a new route to Gillespie Road, taking vehicles through to Roche Cove and on to Metchosin and East Sooke.