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Residents concerned about pumping station delays, headaches

'There’s a flurry of excitement ... and then nothing happens,' resident says; city notes project has experienced some delays

Residents who live next to a sewage pumping station that’s being built are again raising concerns about the project.

The pumping station is being constructed on Cedar Island Road, next to the parking lot at the Elgin Bay Club condo building, to handle the demand that will come from increased development in the area.

Residents aired their objections before and after the location was approved in 2018, citing concerns about the potential environmental effects as the site abuts a creek that flows into Lake Couchiching.

Further issues have arisen since work began in the spring.

“During the heat of the summer, we had to keep all of the windows closed and the air conditioning on, both because of the noise and because of the dust,” said Cliff Whitfield, president of the condo association.

During work that occurred earlier this week on the site, “it was so noisy and shaking so much that the pictures were rattling on the wall,” added resident Cliff Martin.

He wrote to council members in September about another issue — construction activity taking place early on a Sunday morning.

In a response to that email, Mayor Steve Clarke said the contractor was given permission to do “hand work” that was not to include the use of machinery.

“Unfortunately, the subcontractor pushed the limits and did indeed use machinery,” the mayor wrote. “We can assure you that this will not happen again and in fact no work on Sundays will be strictly enforced.”

Ian Sugden, the city’s general manager of development services and engineering, said the city has been working with the contractor to minimize noise from a generator.

“Specifically, the generator has been replaced with a smaller and quieter generator to reduce noise levels,” he said. “Furthermore, to ensure the noise levels are not affecting the neighbouring residents, city staff conducted noise level testing. The results confirmed the noise levels are not significant and are consistent with the noise levels generated by a typical passenger vehicle.”

The city has also asked the contractor to look into the possibility of “acquiring a temporary electrical service that would, if approved, allow for a discontinuation of the use of the current generators.”

Regarding the dust, Sugden said, “the city ensures the contractor actively and regularly waters, and/or places calcium chloride to limit dust and sweeps the entire site as required.”

He also noted city council, in response to residents’ concerns about long-term noise issues, voted to move the emergency generator inside the building once it’s constructed.

Those aren’t the only grievances residents have.

“One of the greatest concerns right now is the uncertainty,” Whitfield said. “People don’t know what’s happening. They know the city has run into severe difficulties. They’ve never shared with us what those difficulties are. It’s what you don’t know that really concerns you.”

Adding to the curiosity, he said, is the frequency of activity on the site.

“There’s a flurry of excitement from time to time and then nothing happens for a week or 10 days at a time,” he said.

Sugden said the contractor is continuing with infrastructure work that includes “employing trenchless installation methods, which will appear as less activity opposed to traditional open-trench excavation methods.”

He added, though, “with respect to the sanitary sewer pump station, the dewatering subcontractor did experience some staffing issues that delayed their mobilization.

“However, they are fully mobilized and proceeding as per the contract.”

Also contributing to project delays are “differences in contract interpretation,” Sugden said.

“The city and the contractor are working to resolve the outstanding issues. The city continues to encourage the contractor to complete the work as per the agreed upon schedule.”

Residents remain worried about environmental implications of the project. Tom Griffiths, who lives at the Elgin Bay Club and is a retired environmental consultant, said building “something like this so close to the lake is incredibly stupid.”

The excavation is currently filled with water, which Griffiths said was contaminated.

That isn’t the case, according to Sugden.

“The sanitary pump station does have standing water within the caisson wall-shoring system. However, the water is rain/surface water and is not contaminated,” he said.

“All water that is pumped from the site travels through an onsite treatment system and is tested to ensure the water-quality levels are within the required parameters before discharging to the adjacent stormwater sewer system.”

The budget for the project is $10.6 million, and the contract awarded by the city is under that budget, Sugden said.

Despite the delays, he said, the goal is to have the station completed in the late spring of 2022.


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Nathan Taylor

About the Author: Nathan Taylor

Nathan Taylor is the desk editor for Village Media's central Ontario news desk in Simcoe County and Newmarket.
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