After council approved an $8.7-million tender for the rehabilitation of Dufferin Avenue, a Wallaceburg councilor believes the province should take another look at its funding program.
Chatham-Kent won $3 million in provincial Connecting Links funding for the project, with the municipality receiving the news last year.
Wallaceburg Coun. Aaron Hall said while he’s pleased the “much needed” work is moving ahead, he has concerns about rising construction costs.
“It’s really important that the province re-evaluate the program,” he said at the May 8 council meeting. “As we hear basically every council meeting, project costs continue to rise year after year. And the funding allotment from the province is not keeping pace.”
The Connecting Links program assists municipalities with repairs to designated municipal roads and bridges that connect two ends of a provincial highway through a community, or to a border crossing.
The maximum funding available is up to 90 per cent of eligible project costs or $3 million per road project, whichever is lower, and up to $5 million for bridge projects.
Chatham-Kent had applied for funding for this project in 2017-18 and 2021-22, without success.
Since then, construction costs have risen, according to a staff report that highlighted the impact of “inflation, supply and demand pressures and various changes in construction regulations.”
Chief administrator Michael Duben said the municipality will continue to lobby the province, including at this summer’s Association of Municipalities of Ontario conference.
“(We) can’t guarantee that the province will accept our request,” he said. “But I think that’s one thing that we can do is continue to advocate to the province.”
Mayor Darrin Canniff believes if multiple municipalities raised concerns it might draw more attention, adding it’s “not just Chatham-Kent that experiences the shortfall in funding.”
Birnam Excavating Ltd., of Arkona, will perform the Dufferin Avenue work, which encompasses the road between McNaughton Avenue and Wallaceburg’s western limits. it will include:
- Replacing water main, including water services and fire hydrants, from Arnold Street to the western limits and improving water main at Dufferin and McNaughton avenues
- Installing new storm sewer from Dauw Avenue to Arnold for future storm expansion on Arnold
- Fully replacing curbs from Arnold to the western limits and partially replacing curbs from Arnold to McNaughton
- Rehabilitating catch basins and maintenance holes
- Installing new sidewalk on the north side of Dufferin from Bruinsma Avenue to the western limits, and partially replacing sidewalks throughout the site, based on condition
- Upgrading traffic signals and intersections
- Rehabilitating paving using cold-in-place recycling
- Grading and restoring boulevards in all areas affected by construction.
Two lanes of traffic on Dufferin and access to all properties and business will be maintained at all times during construction.
Project details will be made public via the Let’s Talk CK webpage. Directly affected property owners will get a letter informing them of the project before work starts, including frequently asked questions and contact information for the contractor, consultant and municipality.
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