Several possible solutions in dealing with Station Road in Hillsburgh are no longer options.
The roadway west of the Hillsburgh fire hall has been close since late last year, and council is still working to find a way to deal with the matter.
Earlier this month, a medical emergency occurred on lands to the west of the closed session, which in turn have led to more urgency to deal with the matter.
In his report to council, roads superintendent Larry Van Wyck said he recently responded to calls from local media and Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott about the amount of time Station Road had been closed, and the delays with repairs needed to reopen the road.
A meeting with Arnott was followed with emails to the Credit Valley Conservation authority and the Ministry of Natural Resources. Since then, those agencies outlined their approval requirements.
Van Wyck also talked with the property owner on the north side Station Road.
The owner, Marcy Quayle, has written to council she neither wants the dam to be removed, nor to bear any associated costs – now or in the future. A geo-technical investigation is now complete, he said
Van Wyck said some options considered by council no longer exist.
Lining the culvert is no longer an option. There are concerns with soil stability of the pipe and filling in any void that may exist. He said there is no assurance a void that could exist next to the pipe would be entirely filled with grout.
“We will need to completely excavate and replace the pipe.”
There are more complications.
“The soil is not stable. If you are going to dig this out, the soil cannot be piled onto the causeway.”
So, the work may be need to be done in phases. One would see soil is removed down to the elevation of the culvert so it can be properly installed. The excavated soil would need to be brought back to the site and put back in – compacted in six inch layers.”
He explained the weight of stored materials on the causeway could cause additional problems.
Van Wyck said any other work done on the dam would need to be certified to meet current standards.
Council was attempting to deal with as small a portion of the dam as possible – not the entire dam.
Councillor John Brennan asked about lowering the hazard classification.
“We can,” said Van Wyck.
Brennan said his interpretation of the responses to the town was “Even if you fix the road to where it was – it is still not good enough because the flood plain is over the dam.”
Van Wyck said the agencies are using old information that is incorrect – or based on the topographic survey.
“They have no idea how much water is being held on the north side of the road – or how much is being held on the south side.”
Van Wyck said elevations of the flood plain used in the correspondence the town received, is higher than the elevation of the flood plain council approved for the design of the [Hillsburgh] fire hall” that is adjacent to the dam.
Van Wyck said town engineers have looked at the information and held discussions with the CVC and the Ministry of Natural Resources.
“If we put some work into this we can significantly lower the flood hazard – as identified.”
But if the town wants to do something, “the onus is on us to prove their information is wrong.”
Erin is having to deal with standards and regulations regarding the dam.
Part of the requirement is it cannot change the hydraulic capability of the dam to carry water from one side to the other, he said. So, Erin cannot install a smaller culvert, a bigger culvert, nor eliminate the culvert altogether.
His report said if the water in the pond is drained, it is questionable if the MNR would permit reinstallation of boards in the dam.
Van Wyck added the information the approval agencies used to determine the flood elevations are based on assumptions and unconfirmed information. That has a significant impact on the hazard classification of the dam, which, in turn, dictates approval requirements.
Van Wyck proposed a topographic survey of the pond be completed to confirm the volume of water stored there and its capacity. That would assist in clarifying the approval requirements. Once the appropriate information is available, a solution can be reached to satisfy all the requirements.
He recommended a review and verification of the flood plain information and recalculating the hazard to determine if it is high, medium or low.
“Once that information is available, we can complete a design and submit it to the MNR for approval.”
He asked council for a resolution authorizing necessary engineering for a design to replace the culvert and to request cooperation to ensure the approvals are prompt to minimize the road closure.
He said the closure not only causes inconvenience to residents, but increased emergency response times.
The Hillsburgh fire hall provides service to half of Erin and portions of East Garafraxa Township.
He said, “In addition to public opinion, this situation involves considerable liability. The Town of Erin may hold other agencies responsible should any additional delays be encountered.”
Brennan asked for an estimate to get the work done.
Van Wyck said first he has to know what must be done.
He said the survey and the calculations will not take long. “It would be two weeks for us to get something to them.”
Van Wyck said the town must provide a full submission, including a lower hazard, with proof why it is a lower risk.
Councillor Josie Wintersinger asked how much it would cost.
“The repair will depend on the approval. The cost depends on what we are allowed to do,” Van Wyck said. “I don’t think we’ll spend $15,000 on engineering, but we need to narrow this down and stick to fixing the culvert – not repairing the dam.”
Mayor Lou Maieron said the CVC stated it is not their game, and gave it to the MNR.
The landowner wants to keep the dam, but not pay costs.
“But I think council’s responsibility is to the taxpayers,” Maieron said.
Although the town might have some ownership of the dam, which he still questions, Maieron said the road needs to get fixed.
He returned to the water control structure not being maintained and the history of it. “Unfortunately we don’t own the whole dam. But the surface of the road is atop that structure.”
He said the culvert serves no purpose.
Van Wyck said Erin was told the structure must be rebuilt to act as it does today.
As Maieron attempted to restart that discussion, Brennan said “That ship has already sailed.”
Maieron maintains it should still be tested because the work is going to cost a lot of money.
Brennan said that was discussed in the original meetings.
“We said the structure is doing things it is not supposed to be doing. We asked whether we had to fix it to what it was designed to do, or what it is doing now.”
Brennan said the town is not allowed to change the hydraulics from the north to the south.
Maieron asked, “If it serves no municipal purpose, why does the town allow it to remain?”
Councillor Barb Tocher replied, “We were told clearly it must remain.”
Maieron continued to question why taxpayers should pay for something owned by a private landowner. “It seems we are being given all the costs and very few options.”
Tocher said, “We either fix it so the road can be there, or we permanently close the road. I think it was very clear from the Ministry how we need to proceed. So now we either get on with it, or we don’t.”
Tocher added, “Our decision at this point is whether we have a road or we don’t.”
As Maieron argued Erin should look at removing the culvert altogether, Tocher said “You’re just stalling.”
She and Brennan noted the agencies have already told the town it is not an option.
Council later passed a resolution to authorize engineering work to design a replacement for the existing culvert and to request cooperation from the associated agencies to expedite that process.
While Brennan said he did not disagree with all of Maieron’s points, it could be next August and council could still be looking at how to fix the road.
