Central Frontenac Council

Julie Druker | Jun 24, 2015

Council addresses Raymo Road collapse

At an emergency meeting on June 18, members of Central Frontenac Council addressed the issue of the collapse of the Raymo Road, which is off Wagarville Road. It had come to the works department's attention that there had been a partial collapse of one of two structural plate culverts on the road, which resulted in a section being washed out and closed to traffic from 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday June 16 (the time of the collapse), until 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 18.

At that time the road was reopened to a single lane of traffic, with signs advising drivers of a load limit of five tons per axle.

Unbeknownst to council, as they were meeting that afternoon, the second culvert also collapsed, making the road totally impassable to traffic. Currently that section of road can now only safely handle foot traffic and is off limits for vehicles. This has forced residents on Raymo Road who travel north and west on a regular basis to drive directly south, to Piccadilly, and then double back on Road 38 north to Parham and points north and east. A 10-minute drive to Parham now takes about 40 minutes, for example, and to Sharbot Lake upwards of an hour.

While Kyle Labbett and Steve Reynolds of the Public Works department were not aware that the second culvert had collapsed, the premise of their presentation at the emergency meeting was already based on replacing both culverts.

According to an OSIM (Ontario Structure Inspection Manual) bridge inspection report that was completed in 2013, it was recommended that two existing culverts be replaced in 2018 due to section loss at the culvert ends and corrosion within the pipe itself, at an estimated cost of $338,000.

Labbett outlined four options for addressing the problem,

The first option is to replace the culverts “like for like” through an invitation to bid process, with the township purchasing the pipe directly from the manufacturer to speed up the process. This option, which would take 8 weeks to complete, was identified in the report as requiring the least amount of engineering work, but it would lead to costly problems over the medium turn.

The second option was to proceed with an invitation to bid, with the successful contractor purchasing the pipe.

The third option is to proceed with the traditional tendering process with full advertising, which would open up the process to more bidders but time-wise would be lengthiest.

The fourth and final option would be for the township to hire a geo-technical firm to bore holes in the road and vicinity and provide a report that would be sent to an engineering firm to review in order to determine the bearing capacity of the soil and suggest different options for replacement.

Following the report a design/build RFP would be released to contractors who would submit their own ideas for replacement. These could include replacing the existing culverts with similar ones, replacing them with an arch culvert, a Bailey Bridge or a pre-cast box culvert, with other ideas also possible.

Labbett reminded council that all the options would require geo-technical and engineering work, at an estimated cost of $22,000.

The report also outlined the possible ways to pay for these road and bridge repairs. They included delaying other planned work for a year and re-directing the funds to this. This would impact planned road and bridge projects on Burke Settlement and Elm Tree Roads

A second option for payment would be to to take money from reserves to repair Raymo Road.

When Council met again this Tuesday (June 23) Kyle Labbett brought forward a new proposal, to proceed with geo-techncial work but to hire the engineering firm, Greer and Galloway Group, to come up with a design and to prepare an invitation to tender.

Treasurer Michael McGovern was asked what he would recommend in terms of financing the project. He said that until public works knows how to proceed, it would be difficult to say, but he did say that Council could consider pulling some or all of the funds from reserves or possibly taking out a loan.

After hearing from McGovern and Labbett, council passed a motion instructing staff to move ahead with geo-technical work. Mayor Frances Smith added that council will move ahead on this issue as soon as any information becomes available, and that she estimates the costs to be anywhere from $300,000 to $500,000.

Labbett estimated that the reconstruction could take a minimum of three to four months. In the meantime the affected section of Raymo Road will remain closed. All talk of road fixes are cold comfort for Raymo Road residents, who are likely to be facing long detours at least until the end of the summer.

$610,000 grant to EOTA

Mayor Frances Smith announced that the Eastern Ontario Trails Alliance received a grant of $610,000, some of which will benefit trails in Central Frontenac.

Lions liquor bottle shed approved at Hinchinbrooke site

Council approved staff's recommendation to allow for a liquor bottle donation and storage shed at the Hinchinbrooke waste site. It will be the third shed set up by the Sharbot Lake and District Lions, who are happy to take empty liquor bottles as donations.

Cardinal Cafe to open July 4

Mayor Frances Smith announced that the owners of the new Cardinal Cafe, located in the old Catholic church on Road 38 in Sharbot Lake, will be holding their official grand opening on Saturday, July 4.

Parham Playground Equipment tender awarded

Council approved staff's recommendations to award the tender of the Parham playground equipment to Playground Planners at a cost of $39,267.

Permanent hockey rink in Sharbot Lake?

In his delegation to council, Dave Willis of the Oso Recreation Committee requested that council support and share the costs of building a permanent ice hockey rink at the Oliver Scott Memorial Park in Sharbot Lake, which is located near the ballfied at the Granite Ridge Education Centre. Willis explained that the committee has acquired the rink boards and glass and he hopes that the township would help to contribute to the pouring of a concrete pad. Willis said that the committee plans to raise most of the costs through fundraising and that the park would be the perfect location for a rink since it offers parking, lights and washroom facilities. “A permanent rink, Willis said, “would offer members of the community, young and old, opportunities to stay fit and have fun throughout the winter season.” Council received the information and approved the request.

Outdoor fitness equipment in Sharbot Lake?

On behalf of the Oso Recreation Committee, Joan and Rudy Holywood made a presentation to council requesting their approval of the installation of outdoor fitness equipment on township property located on the east side of the K&P trail between the beach and the government dock. Presently the committee has earmarked $1500 to initially purchase three pieces of equipment and are hoping to purchase six more pieces at a total cost of $30,000. They hope to have the equipment installed as part of the Multi-Use Cutural Centre Commitee's Enhanced Trail Project. Council accepted the presentation for information and approved the request. They advised the presenters to attend the next meeting of the MUCC.