WATERMAIN REPLACEMENT

The replacement of watermains along Lions Bay Avenue, Cloudview and Seaview commenced in 2011. Funding for this project was secured through a Build Canada Grant of $875,000 (1/3 Fed, 1/3 Prov, 1/3 Mun), and through the Water Utility Tax. Watermain replacement commenced February 17th, 2011.

WATERMAIN WEEKLY UPDATES* - COURTESY HYLAND EXCAVATING LTD.

To May 30: Paving work will commence on May 30th at the very low end of Lions Bay Ave. Workers will mill out and remove the asphalt roadway, followed by grading and rolling the base, then finally paving. The work should take approximately a week and half to complete the entire job.
Residents will not be able to park on the roadways during this work period and should be aware of gravel roads for a couple days during construction. There may be some dust and some tar odour as is typically associated with paving work.
April 11 to April 15: Crews will complete placing all remaining services and hydrants on Cloudview Place and Lion's Bay Ave. The watermains, hydrants and services will be loaded with water and for pressure testing of the entire system that is planned for Wednesday by an independent sub-contractor. Once the pressure test is successfully completed the watermain will be chlorinated, disinfected, flushed and bacteriological tests will be completed to confirm all water is safe for consumption.
April 18 to April 22: Crews will be cleaning up road shoulders and grassed areas early in the week before completing the water service connections at each residence once all test results are known to be successful. Notifications of water service disruptions will be provided at least 24 hours in advance to all residences. In addition, crews will knock on doors to notify individual residents prior to any shutoffs to facilitate switching over service connections to the new watermain. Service disruptions are not anticipated to be longer than 15 minutes during this work.
March 25
A crew will be working at Lion's Bay Ave. and the CN Rail crossing. A pit will be excavated on the west side of the tracks to accommodate the augering machine. This pit is right at the marina entrance road location, once excavation is completed we will place shoring cages inside the pit and then place steel road plates over top of the excavation. This will allow all traffic to travel along Lion's Bay Ave. and also into the marina unobstructed. There will be short delays for vehicles while we are working in this area.

March 28 to April 1:
A crew will continue working on Lion's Bay Ave. at the CN Rail crossing for the entire week. There will be brief delays for vehicles while we are working in this area. Work is expected to be completed in this section by the end of the week with clean up and temporary asphalt paving by the end of Friday. We will also continue working northward on Seaview Place during the week from Lion's Bay Ave. to the north end of Seaview Place

All areas will be swept, vacuumed and temporary asphalt patched by the end of Friday.

March 21 Update: Work continues on Lions Bay Avenue despite the wet weather over the last week. In fact many of you may have seen the temporary silt traps placed to filter any dirt from the rain runoff (above left).

Hyland Excavating is nearly completed the installation of the watermain all the way up Lions Bay Avenue to the Highway on-ramp (above middle). After this section is completed, Hyland will begin the watermain installation along Cloudview Place and Seaview Place in the following weeks.

A second crew has also started installing service connections from the new watermain to the residential property lines (above right). This will allow residences to be quickly changed over from the old watermain to the new watermain once it is brought on-line, preventing any lengthy interruptions in service to residences.

March 11 Update: Watermain construction is well underway on Lions Bay Avenue. The contractor hired by the Village, Hyland Excavating, has already completed the installation of the main from the cul-de-sac at the end of Lower Lions Bay Avenue to the railway crossing.

This work has included hanging a section of watermain across the underside of the bridge crossing at Harvey Creek, the installation of several new fire hydrants, and the removal of numerous large boulders from the watermain trench.

Work will now proceed up the hill on Lions Bay Avenue right up to the highway entrance, after which work on Seaview Place and Cloudview Place will commence.

Many residents may have seen the temporary asphalt patch work along the path of the new watermain (pictured above left). This temporary paving is intended to provide a drivable surface during the remainder of construction along Lions Bay Avenue, Seaview Place and Cloudview Place until all subsurface works are completed.

After the new main is completely installed and no further holes need to be dug, the entire road surface from shoulder to shoulder will be milled down and then repaved with a layer of new asphalt. Road resurfacing and road shoulder restoration and landscaping is currently scheduled for early May in order to provide a brand new road surface free of any unsightly patch work just in time for the summer months.
Week of March 6 - March 26: Crews will continue placing the watermain from #190 Lions Bay Avenue to the Marina Road entrance and continuing up Lions Bay Avenue from CN Railway ROW to Cloudview Place. Trucking of import materials will be routed from Hwy#99 to the construction areas and the Hyland construction compound parking lot while excavated material will be trucked to Squamish until access to the Village dump site improves over the current winter conditions. Equipment and materials will be continually moving in and out of the compound parking lot. On Friday of each week the trench lines will patched with asphalt, all roads swept and vacuumed and a general clean up of areas under construction will be completed.

Week of February 27 - March 5: Work on Lions Bay Ave. from addresses # 310 to # 140. - placing watermains. Hauling materials from our compound to the work site and hauling spoils to dump site on top of Oceanview Road.

Week of February 20 - 26, 2011: Work on Lions Bay Ave at Harvey Creek Bridge - approx. 15 meters out each side of bridge. Also sawcutting asphalt trench lines throughout entire project area. Continue deliveries of materials & equipment to our compound site.

* Please note that weather and road conditions may cause Hyland Excavating to alter schedule.

LETTER TO LOWER LIONS BAY RESIDENTS

January 2010 - Letter from Hyland Excavating Ltd. informing residents of forthcoming construction in their area.

Please be aware:

Construction Crews and trucks will be traversing our streets over the course of the next 3 months for the Lower Lions Bay Watermain replacement project. This work will entail drop-off of materials, for storage, at the Harvey Creek area. While the drivers will take every precaution for safety, please be aware of the work.

TENDER ANNOUNCED

January 2011 - In a special meeting on January 17^th, Council reviewed bids from six contractors who bid separately on the three aspects of the proposed project(s).

A. Water line replacement

B. Burial of utilities wiring on public areas (temporary private poles on private property would be needed)

C. Underground wiring on private property.

In the end, the Village awarded the contract to Hyland Excavating Ltd. for Part A only. The project will commence in February.

Exploring opportunities for underground wiring has been in the Lions Bay Official Community Plan for some years. In hopes of doing these projects together to leverage possible cost savings, Council held public information sessions, discussions with utility providers and informal polling of residents. A majority of lower Lions Bay residents seemed interested in removal of power poles and wires. Property owners in the area would have paid for underground wiring through a special area tax, amortized over a number of years. Tax deferral might have been possible for some eligible residents.

Unfortunately, costs came in too close to the original “worst case scenario” in spite of a beautification grant from B.C. Hydro and contributions from Telus and Shaw. Staff analysis also showed that borrowing for the project might unduly limit the Village’s capacity to borrow for other projects, or for emergencies. Councillor Ruth Simons will compile a final report with complete details which can be made available on request. The project provided valuable learning for Council and staff, in case future such opportunities arise.

The text of the related Council resolutions follows.

Resolution moved by Councillor Taylor and Seconded by Councillor Ronsley

Resolved that: The Village of Lions Bay council awards the Tender Part A, Lower Lions Bay Water Line Replacement to Hyland Excavating Ltd, with the project breaking ground prior to March 31st, 2011.

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Resolution moved by Councillor Akerhielm and Seconded by Councillor Taylor

Resolved that: Lions Bay Council recommends that the B and C portion of the Tender not be awarded in view of staff’s debt service analysis and recommendation not to proceed due to the limitations imposed on future capital financing requirements for the Village of Lions Bay as a whole.

Potential Underground Wiring

November 2010 - Council and staff pursued the opportunity for underground burial of wires to coincide with the watermain replacement.

Residents of Lower Lions Bay met with AECOM, BC Hydro, Shaw and TELUS on September 15, 2010. Attached is the PowerPoint presentation from the September 15th meeting regarding the Potential Underground Wiring, and the minutes from the September 15 Public Meeting.

An Open House for residents was held on November 18, 2010. In attendance were representatives from the engineering firm leading the project, as well as Telus, Hydro and Shaw. Preliminary quotes for underground wiring and private poles for several properties were illustrated. Residents were provided a Questions and Answers sheet, and the timelines for tendering of the projects and decision making by Council. Residents should note that actual costs will be known towards the end of January and the next Public Meeting will be held on February 2nd.

Residents wishing to know preliminary costs for the private portion requirement of this work can contact the Village Manager.

What Realtors have to say about Underground Wiring.. . .....

Any questions regarding this project contact: Rory Mandryk, Village Manager or 604-921-9333.