Tara Jeffrey
It’s not easy deciding which of Sarnia’s streets should get re-paved, says the city’s construction manager.
“It’s very, very difficult to come up with 10 roads when there are 100 roads that warrant it,” Rob Williams said of the ‘Road Rehabilitation’ winners — namely, the list of streets approved for repair this year.
“We have so much need and it’s a complicated process,” he said, citing asphalt age and infrastructure as factors.
“The younger parts of the city are really good candidates for resurfacing because their infrastructure is relatively young. A good example is the north end, which was pretty much built in the ‘50s and ‘60s.
“In the older parts of the city, we’re looking at total reconstruction, where we are changing out everything — water mains, sewers — and building a new road on top.”
A $1.2-million tender was awarded this month to DiCocco Contractors to begin the work.
“We’re actually still completing some of the roads from last year that we didn’t complete,” said Williams. “So, the start date for this tender is June 6 and we’re planning on being done before Labour Day.”
The winners will undergo a ‘shave and pave’ — grinding down the top two inches of distressed asphalt and repaving —which adds eight to 10 years of life to the road.
A second tender is in the works to complete intersection upgrades at Indian and Errol roads, as well as resurfacing Errol between Indian and Murphy, Williams noted.
“We are feverishly getting that ready so we can get it to council in June and get working on it in the summer.”
The projects are part of a $2.3-million road rehabilitation budget, after council agreed to add $1 million of Ontario Community Infrastructure funding earlier this year.
But that’s still just scratching the surface, Williams said.
“I don’t know that we’re catching up… I think the need is just increasing,” he said, noting City Hall if continually fielding calls from residents who ask, “Why not my road?”
“We try to keep a list of requests and we consider that every year, but it’s tough with a limited budget. We’re doing our best with the budget that’s available,” he said.
“But a great deal of our roads are deteriorated and in various states of distress — and really need more attention.”
STREETS TO BE REHABILITATED THIS YEAR:
- Twin Lakes Drive (full length)
- Bluaire Gate (full length)
- Briarfield Avenue (Rosedale to Michigan)
- Breakey Road (Briarfield to Hagle)
- Hollywood Place (Colborne to Glen Douglas)
- Glen Allen Drive (full length)
- Napier Street (Nelson to Exmouth)
- Rowe Avenue. (Lakeshore to McCaw)
- McKay Avenue (Cathcart to Rowe)