Duane Hicks
North-end residents will be happy to hear work on the Portage Avenue underpass has been moving along according to schedule—and should be completed by the first week of October.
Operations and Facilities manager Doug Brown told council Monday night that recent work has included pouring the concrete slab for the new west sidewalk, and well as the installation of all reinforcing steel for the new sidewalk curb, the repositioning of the west laneway catch basins, and the forming and pouring of the two-foot high slope side sidewalk curb.
Brown said the new sidewalk should be re-opened to pedestrian traffic today or tomorrow, and will remain so from here on out.
As well, work on the west laneway began yesterday.
Brown said one major job coming up is the replacement of 45 metres of 300 mm diameter PVC sanitary sewer line on the south approach of Portage Avenue.
Work on this likely will start next Wednesday. And because of this, Brown said that for three days next week (Wednesday-Friday), motorists will not be able to drive through the underpass at all because of the excavation.
Motorists instead will have to use McIrvine Road to gain access to and from the north end during this time.
Emergency vehicles will use the Victoria Avenue crossing.
Brown said he’s been getting positive comments about all the work getting done on the underpass this month.
“We’re pleased the contractor’s back and at this point, based on the schedule we have, we’re on target to be done the first week of October,” he remarked.
In other road construction news, the intersection at Scott Street and Portage Avenue will be closed to through traffic starting at noon next Tuesday (Aug. 4) for roughly a week to complete the installation of pipes there.
Transport trucks will be re-routed along Church Street, Veterans Avenue, Sinclair Street, Victoria Avenue, and Front Street.
Temporary wooden barriers, complete with “No Exit” and “Local Traffic Only” signs, will be installed at the intersections of Scott and Mowat and Scott and Victoria to inform motorists of the traffic changes.
Access to Scott Street from either end still will be permitted, but the public will not able to pass through the intersection.
Meanwhile, as the early stages of work have begun on the stretch of Portage Avenue from Scott Street to Nelson Street, the biomass road work going on at Nelson Street and Victoria Avenue is close to being finished, with the curb work nearly complete and most of the sidewalk work done.
The new parking lot located west of St. Mary’s Church, off Nelson Street, has been built with light standards installed, but it still needs to be paved.
Brown said asphalt will be laid on the portion of the roads in those areas within two weeks and they’ll be re-opened to traffic.
Waterfront work
Meanwhile, Community Services manager George Bell said Monday night the pilings are completed at both the new sites for the Hallett and lookout tower on Front Street.
Crews presently are doing the steel work for the Hallett’s retaining wall and deck. The boat will be moved to the new site in mid to late August.
The foundation and slab is completed for the tower.
One issue that’s arisen, though, is paint removal from the old tower, noted Bell.
“We’re struggling getting it off with the water pressure. We’re looking at a biodegradable paint stripper this week,” he remarked.
Up to this point, the plan had been to remove the old paint from the tower and then leave it with its natural steel finish.
Depending on how the paint removal goes, however, it may end up getting a new coat of paint instead.
Bell also said the project steering committee recently met with the contractor, and is determining where to put banners and wayfinding, which also are part of the heritage tourism project.
After consulting with stakeholders, there also has been a decision to decrease the number of signs from 49 to 29, but to make them larger.
Any cost-savings from this may be used to help pay for the cost of repainting of the tower.
Finally, work at the site of the future Fort Frances Public Library and Technology Centre at the corner of Reid Avenue and Second Street East continues to move along.
Bell said the gravel initially put down at the site failed impaction tests and had to be removed. It’s since been replaced with other gravel, which passed the tests.
