Engineer’s drawing convinces Holyrood to lift Stop Work orders

By Craig Westcott/December 9, 2021

Holyrood council has lifted the Stop Work orders on a development at Terry’s Mountain, now that the proponent has submitted a plan that shows how it will keep the T’Railway in the area safe.

Infrastructure and public works committee member Sadie King made two motions last week related to the development, one to lift the Stop Work orders, the other to let developer Harry Spurrell of Granite Management to repair the site. The Stop Work orders were issued this past May.

Councilor King noted that Spurrell hired MAE Design of Conception Bay South to come up with a repair plan for the work that was done earlier and that it has been approved by the T’Railway Commission and also reviewed by her committee, which incudes fellow councilor Steve Winsor, who is a professional engineer.

Terry’s Mountain is located on the former railway bed, between The Valley area and North Side Road.

“So, it’s up to us now to let this go ahead,” King said. “The committee recommends approval based on the information provided by MAE Design and the plan put forward. This design investigated and evaluated the conditions of the site and has provided a permanent solution to ensure the T’Railway will be safe for all users once remediation work has been completed.”

Councilor Laura Crawley said she hasn’t had a chance to review the design, but trusts that it has been reviewed by the committee and if they are recommending approval, she is willing to support it.

Councilor Winsor noted the Town has been working with the provincial government and Granite Management to come up with a solution. “Our initial concern was to ensure it was done correctly, and to a standard that will be safe for all users in the future,” he said. “I’m really pleased to see that the proponent did the right thing and engaged an engineering consultant who visited the area and provided an assessment, a letter and a sketch, which he has stamped. And as a registered engineer in good standing with the Province, this individual is therefore taking responsibility of that design. That was one of my concerns around the original remediation (plan) — who is taking responsibility and liability for this in the future? So, I’m satisfied now that the process has been followed and a professional person trained in these matters has put forward a solution and stamped it.”

Mayor Gary Goobie acknowledged the issue has been ongoing for quite some time. “Many residents have expressed some concerns to me and I’m sure they’ve expressed concern to you folks as well about the safety issues and what could possibly happen over there if the site was not mitigated to a certain standard,” Goobie said. “So I’m glad now that the plan is in place and we’re going to see this project go forward and get this site mitigated for the safety of the public.”

Both motions passed unanimously. King said that this paves the way to let Granite get on the with the job.

“Winter is coming, but we want to get the project started, so we will be in touch with the proponent and encourage him to get this done as soon as practically possible,” said Winsor.