Paving contractor runs out of time in CBS
Town gets first look at engineer’s analysis of Frog Pond
By Craig Westcott
October 13, 2023 Edition
The contractor hired to undertake the Town of Conception Bay South’s street paving and sidewalk program this past summer won’t complete all the work in time, says Ward 4 councillor Melissa Hardy, who chairs the Town’s engineering committee.
“Staff are working really hard to finish up our construction projects over the next month,” Hardy reported last week. “Not every day is going to be 16 or 17 degrees like we’ve had the last couple of days. We know winter is coming at some point. But unfortunately, the contractor completing this year’s streets and sidewalk projects is not going to be able to complete all of the work in accordance with the contract schedules.”
Hardy said the work on Greenslades Road in Long Pond and Delaneys Road in Foxtrap will be deferred until 2024, as will two sidewalk projects in Kelligrews.
“Staff are currently working with the contractor to ensure that as soon as the 2024 season opens they’ll be first on the list,” said the councillor. “I’m certainly looking forward to those projects being completed.”
And in related news, Hardy’s committee has received a partial draft of a hydrogeological report on the draining of Frog Pond in Topsail. The report is being done by the engineering firm Stantec.
Hardy didn’t mention the report at the public meeting, but minutes from the committee’s latest meeting indicated Town staff have reviewed the report and returned it to Stantec “for updating.”
“It is expected to take several more weeks for a final draft report to be presented to council,” according to the minutes. “The property owner has been updated on the report status.”
The well-loved gully went bone dry last fall after the Town completed installation of water and sewer services on the road. It’s not known if the engineers who drew up the specifications for the construction made provision to protect the wetland and the underground streams which fed it from the construction, or if any measures were taken by the construction company to protect the pond, which has been a prized natural outdoor skating rink for residents in the area for as long as anyone can remember.