Road Superintendent Larry Van Wyck said some of Erin’s sidewalks are in such an “extremely deficient” condition the town might be defenseless against a lawsuit if anyone ever has an accident.
“We’re not putting enough money towards this to rectify the problems we have,” Van Wyck told council last week.
He said the town’s annual $15,000 budget for sidewalk repairs needs to be increased significantly over a few years just to fix all the current problems, including broken and uneven sidewalks, some with elevation differences of up to a foot (far above the 2cm suggested gap).
In fact, Van Wyck said the situation is such that the town could immediately spend almost $80,000 just to address the worst sidewalks in Hillsburgh alone, including areas along George Street.
That work would include about $54,000 to remove the existing sidewalks, plus another $20,000 to $25,0000 for repairs, he added.
There are bad areas in Erin village as well, including along Daniel Street, though Van Wyck suggested the town at the very least take care of the work in Hillsburgh as soon as possible. He wants to permanently remove some sidewalks, particularly those that “don’t go anywhere.”
He said town staff could complete some of the work, including tearing up the existing sidewalks, but he recommended hiring Capital Paving Inc. to help with items such as repairing affected driveways and hydroseeding ditches.
Councillor Barb Tocher said the town would likely get a better price from Capital than from other companies because Capital will already be in Hillsburgh for the reconstruction of Orangeville and Mill Streets (it was awarded the $394,060 tender for that work on July 28).
Finance director Sharon Marshall said the town currently has about $15,000 to $20,000 in sidewalk reserves, and she would investigate to see if any other funds are available.
Mayor Rod Finnie expressed concern about completely removing sidewalks in urban areas, because they are important, especially to parents and local children.
He said asphalt walkways, as proposed by Van Wyck for at least one location, can be dangerous, as some drivers consider them part of the road.
Van Wyck said there is a clear separation between road and walkway where he is proposing asphalt be used, and he is only proposing the removal of seldom used sidewalks that lead to nowhere. Plus, he added, there is not enough room for a standard-sized sidewalk in some of the areas to which he was referring. He told council he would come back in the near future with a more detailed explanation of the work, including costs.
