Cathy Dobson/Local Journalism Initative

Help is on its way for city drivers looking for fewer pot holes and Coronation Park residents anxious to lower the risk of a basement flood.

Monday, Sarnia city council approved contracts worth a total of approximately $8.7 million, a large outlay for four major road reconstruction jobs and a pump station upgrade.

Several of the projects focus on sewer separation, which will decrease pollution into the St. Clair River and lower the risk of basement flooding in a Sarnia neighbourhood that has seen its share of water damage.

“Many roads in (Sarnia) are in very poor condition,” said the city’s chief engineer David Jackson.  The last few years have seen record amounts spent on very large projects to improve local roads, he said.

Serious reinvestment in infrastructure continues with these projects and more will come before council next month.

Approved contracts include:

• Johnston and Queen Street reconstruction.  Contract awarded to Henry Heyink Construction for $1.5 million.  An old combined sewer that carries both sanitary sewage and storm water run-off will be replaced with two lines along Johnston from Front Street to Queen Street, and Queen Street from Johnston to Talfourd Street. The project includes new road, curb and gutter, sidewalk and new water, storm and sanitary sewers.

• Kathleen Avenue from Walnut Street South to Indian Road North. Contract awarded to BKT Excavating Ltd. for $2.6 million.  The project includes new road, curb and gutter, sidewalk, water, and sanitary.

• Copland Road from Exmouth Street to Alexander Street.  Contract awarded to Clarke Construction Inc. for $1.87 million.  The project includes new road, curb and gutter, sidewalk and new water, storm and sanitary.

• McGregor Sideroad project scope includes asphalt resurfacing between Plank Road and Gladwish Drive. Contract awarded to DiCocco Contractors for $744,191.

• Talfourd  pump station upgrade at the corner of Indian Rd. South and Talfourd Street. Contracts awarded to Birnam Excavating Ltd. for $1.83 million, plus B.M.Ross & Associates for $97,689 for consulting. This project is part of the ongoing efforts to mitigate the risk of sewer backups and flooding in the Coronation Park Area. This project will provide a significant 50% increase to the wastewater pumping capacity of the Talfourd Pump Station.

An increase in pump station capacity is one of several measures planned in Coronation Park to mitigate flooding.  The existing pumping station was designed to handle the typical wastewater volume but is overwhelmed during significant rain events due to stormwater inflow and infiltration into the wastewater system.  The pumping capacity increase won’t remove all risk of flooding.

The disconnection of improperly connected sump pumps remains a high priority to address the frequency of sewer backups experienced during rainstorms. So far, the city has assisted 86 homes in disconnecting their sump pumps from the sanitary sewer, which has significantly reduced the amount of stormwater entering the wastewater system, says an engineering report.