Seal Cove bridge frustration boiling over
Members of CBS council are in the unenviable position of having to sit on their hands and grimace as they await work to resume on the replacement of Seal Cove bridge.
Councillor-at-large Joshua Barrett offered the latest update on the project last week in the absence of the area’s ward councillor, Melissa Hardy.
Barrett said the contractor, Brook Construction of Corner Brook, which won the $3.03 million tender last fall, is still waiting on a piece of drilling equipment to resume work. The old bridge was closed to traffic in early May with the new span expected to be in place within four months. However, the contractor was late starting the job, and the project has been idle for much of the past summer.
Barrett said work resumed August 31 with demolition of the south abutment, and the north and south abutments prepped for drilling.
“The completion of the bridge is still expected this year,” Barrett said. “We do apologize for the ongoing disruption and encourage our residents to continue supporting businesses in the area affected by the delays.”
Barrett said the Town will provide updates on the detour at Garden Road.
“Council remains frustrated and disappointed by this, but we are doing everything that we can to try and move this along,” he added.
Mayor Darrin Bent admitted the delays have caused him to doubt the soundness of the public tendering process.
“The time frame that we have comes from the contractor,” Bent said. “To say that we’re all extremely disappointed on behalf of the residents of Seal Cove is an understatement. It’s taking on a life of its own with our staff and our council to try to mitigate this situation as best as possible. But the truth of the matter is this is in the hands of the contractor. They bid through the provincial bidding process, they were awarded the contract as they met the criteria laid out in the provincial tendering process, and they rightfully have the contract. But having the contract, they have an obligation to do the work… Honestly, there have been what seems to be delays consistently throughout the project, but the biggest one came when it was realized by the contractor that they didn’t have the proper equipment on site. So, what is the ramification of that? The only one seems to be an absolute misery for people in Seal Cove getting back and forth in that area.”
Bent said council has heard all kinds of suggestions to rectify the situation, including calls to replace the contractor. But that would end up delaying it even further, probably for another year, and it would cost twice as much, he said.
Others have asked why the Town didn’t just replace the bridge with large culverts. But Bent explained culverts aren’t a viable solution for the long-term stability of the road going over the river.
“I can assure everyone this situation is through no fault of our staff, or engineering department or anyone here at the Town Hall or council,” said the mayor. “This is squarely the responsibility of the recipient of the contract… and it’s their obligation to finish it.”
Bent said he has raised concerns about the Town’s inability to hold the contractor to the schedule with both the provincial government and Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador.
“We are in a delayed process that is quite frankly, excruciating for some, a little bit of an inconvenience for others, and it is extremely disappointing for all of us sat around this table, and our staff as well,” Bent said. “We will be providing updates as our staff are able to ascertain them from the contractor and we will be sharing them on our socials, in The Shoreline and wherever to let people know where things are. But in the meantime, they are still waiting for a piece of drill equipment to come. We do not have a timeline on when it’s supposed to arrive, we were told within the coming weeks a few weeks ago. Our staff are still working on trying to get a better timeline on all of that.”