It has been a busy construction season in Estevan thus far. With long-awaited projects like the rebuilding of 13th Avenue from Fourth Street to Sixth Street and the paving of the leisure centre parking lot complete, residents can expect more odds and ends to be completed by the end of the fall.
Though the pace of heavy construction has been removed from the busiest areas of the city, the road construction connecting Wellock and Sister Roddy Roads near the St. Joseph's Hospital is nearing completion.
A less visible but vital construction project that continues, with expected completion this fall, is the new biosolids processing facility for the wastewater treatment plant, a $1.4 million project.
Kevin Sutter, Estevan water treatment manager, said the construction by Wilhelm Construction Services Inc. is progressing and he expects the work to be completed this fall on schedule and on budget.
"The next step is to connect the utilities and do the electrical work inside," he said.
Sutter noted the equipment for the building, which costs another $475,000, is to be installed next year as part of the City's 2015 budget. He said the equipment has been ordered but won't be delivered until the new year and should be installed in the spring.
"We will be using it as storage until we get the equipment in. My goal is to have it all in the processing mode at the beginning of March," said Sutter.
Reflecting on the work the City has completed this year, Mayor Roy Ludwig said he is pleased with the results on Highway 47 north on 13th Avenue and the pavement at the leisure centre parking lot.
"We're very happy the Highway 47 north project is, finally, now completed. We're happy with the results," said the mayor. "The parking lot, I know that has been an ongoing issue for some time now, but that's completed. Hopefully, all of our citizens will be happy with the results. That was something that was hanging over our heads for some time. It's very nice to get that completed."
Ludwig acknowledged the City has heard some concerns regarding the curbing in the parking lot but said they are hoping to mitigate any problem areas with flags in the winter time.
"(We want) to make sure that number one, our people with the snow removal do not hit it and number two, that people do not drive over it with their vehicles."
He noted the placement of trees and shrubs help to make it attractive while also helping to mark where there are curbs. Considering the use the City hopes the parking lot receives, not just for sporting events, leisure activities and education, but also a major conference centre for Estevan, the parking lot services more than just local residents. It will be frequented by tourists, delegates and others who come to Estevan for either business or pleasure.
"Lots of times, we're open to criticism. In that case there, with that particular parking lot, we did go through a professional. We were hoping to be, not necessarily using cutting edge technology, but using the latest and greatest on how to make a parking lot attractive," said Ludwig. "Hopefully, at the end of the day, most of our people will agree that it is looking pretty good. It is a showcase for us with Affinity Place being so popular. In and of itself, Affinity Place is a great showcase for the city, so it would be natural for the parking lot to reflect that."
With the completion of Highway 47 north in Estevan and the leisure centre parking lot, the City will give much of their attention to fixing streets where cuts have been made in the road for watermain replacements.
"We're looking at getting most of those done, at the least the ones where people have been waiting for three years. We'd like to get that caught up. Hopefully we can, on a yearly basis now, we'll just have our people wait a year rather than two or three years," he said regarding paving over the gravel areas. "I know there has been some frustration with that."
One area that requires new pavement in order to clean up where watermain work has been completed is on Kensington Avenue, where work was needed to hook up new industrial complexes to the utilities.
"We will be looking at paving those cuts as soon as possible because that is such a busy thoroughfare."
Attention will also be turning to Sixth Street as something of a continuation of the roadwork on 13th Avenue. Watermain replacement is on the agenda for any work to come on Sixth, and Ludwig said the City will be working with the engineering department on determining timelines.
"We'll have to have a bit more discussion on (when construction will begin), because with the watermains having to be replaced, we're looking at some new technologies, such as pipe bursting, technologies along that line, that will hopefully be not as invasive as totally digging up the street and physically replacing the lines. We're looking at costs," said Ludwig.
