One of the oldest streets in Glenmerry will soon be ripped up end-to-end so its failing pipes can be brought up to code.
Since 2011, the water main on Iris Crescent has burst seven times, compared to the pipes on neighbouring streets which broke once or twice in a decade.
“So it’s been quite a little problematic section of water main,” explained Chris McIsaac, head of public works. “And it’s also undersized according to today’s standards. The line is four inches, which was a standard back in the day when the subdivision was built, in the early 1950s.”
Within the city’s water hydraulic model, that particular section of pipe no longer meets conditions required for fire flows.
“Today’s standards are six inch (lines),” McIsaac said. “So along with the breaks, the age of the pipe, and the fact that it’s undersized, we are going to take the opportunity to upsize the main.”
Due to the location and depth of the excavation, McIsaac says it’s conducive to replace the aging sewer infrastructure at the same time.
Ground is expected to break next month and last until late summer, which will affect the driveway access of 24 homes.
Trail council awarded the $715,000 Iris Crescent Rebuilt Project to Marwest Industries of Castlegar on Monday, as well as the site supervision contract of $55,000 to True Consulting of Trail.
The pricey repair was originally scheduled to stretch out over two years, as a way to tamp down the financial impact.
When the first phase went to tender last year, however, bids that came in were well over budget, so the job was deferred.
“So we carried the funding over to 2019, and asked council to fund the remainder,” said McIsaac. “They agreed to fund the whole project this year, so that’s why we are going ahead.”
As a whole, the project involves the installation of 243 metres (797 feet) of 150 mm (6 inch) water main; installation of 203 metres (666 feet) of 150 mm (6 inch) sanitary sewer main; reconstruction of 23 water and sanitary sewer services; removal and replacement of up to 180 metres (590 feet) of concrete curb and gutter; and full length, curb to curb paving.
The five bids received were: Marwest Industries Limited $714,558; Copcan Civil Limited $912,265; Cantex-Okanagan Construction Limited $922,335; Hil-Tech Contracting Limited $1,110,906; Interoute Construction Limited $1,273,085; and Kaon Infrastructure Limited $1,432,946.
The Iris Crescent re-build is the second only to the Union Hotel teardown in terms of capital costs this year.
Demolition and a re-dress of the Victoria Street property and two adjoining empty lots nears $1 million.
Remedial work at that site will include updating water, sewer and drain lines, as well as compacting the ground with backfill so it will be set for new development.
