Road repairs - Page 11

thistleclub · #**201** Posted **Feb 4, 2015, 9:27 PM**

Stoney Creek’s King Street reconstruction will test customer loyalty
(Stoney Creek News, Mike Pearson, Feb 3 2015)

At least one Stoney Creek business has opted to close its storefront, but most are just hoping for the best as city staff prepares for a $6.5-million reconstruction of King Street.

After eight years at the Elm King Plaza, House of Floral Designs has shifted to an online-based business as of Feb. 1. Owner Francesca Lo Presti said the business will continue to operate with consultations held by appointment only at the Hamilton Convention Centre by Carmen’s Décor Centre and Latkat Linens at 583 Barton St. E. in Stoney Creek.

With road closures expected during the summer and fall, Lo Presti doesn’t want to take chances with time-sensitive floral deliveries, especially during the wedding season.

“I was kind of nervous, because I can’t call my brides and tell them the day of their wedding I’m going to be an hour late,” she said.

Lo Presti said the King Street closure was a key factor in her decision to shift business models.

Beginning in late April or early May, city officials plan to tear up King Street from Battlefield Drive to Applewood Avenue, completing the project in stages.

King will be down to one lane between Battlefield and Lake Avenue.

King Street will then be closed from Lake to Elm streets for about six months for extensive infrastructure replacements, including water and sewer upgrades.

Detour signs will be posted and Lake Avenue is expected to provide an alternative route around the construction zone.

Read it in full here.

thistleclub · #**202** Posted **Feb 12, 2015, 9:30 PM**

Dufferin Construction awarded Concession contract
(Hamilton Mountain News, Mark Newman, Feb 12 2014)

Final planning for the reconstruction of Concession Street from Upper Wellington to Upper Sherman is moving forward after the $10 million project was awarded to a Toronto firm.

Dufferin Construction was awarded the work recently and according to Chris McCafferty, senior project manager in the city’s public works department, the contractor is preparing their preliminary scheduling plans for the work.

“We’re hoping we’ll have it later this month,” said McCafferty, who expects construction to begin in the early spring (weather permitting) and be completed by December.

The work will include relining or replacing both water mains along Concession Street along with road reconstruction and the addition of urban Braille sidewalks and coloured concrete boulevards that will match what is currently in front of the Juravinski hospital.

New pedestrian-activated crossing signals will be installed at East 13th and at Viewpoint Avenue.

Last month city councillors agreed to add another $2.6 million to the project after receiving two bids that were above the $7.4 million originally set aside for the work.

The project also includes $800,000 from Ward 7 councillor Scott Duvall’s area-rating fund.

thistleclub · #**203** Posted **Feb 12, 2015, 9:58 PM**

Snake Road bridge to re-open next week
(Flamborough Review, Catherine O’Hara, Feb 12 2014)

The Snake Road bridge is expected to re-open sometime next week.

According to a notice posted on the City of Burlington website Feb. 10, Canadian Pacific is preparing to pave the new railway crossing with the hopes of re-opening the bridge to pedestrian and vehicular traffic the week of Feb. 16.

Last fall, the aging bridge was demolished and work to install a new timber structure began. Originally, CP crews expected the bridge that connects Burlington’s Snake Road to Waterdown’s Thomson Drive to re-open by Dec. 20, 2014. That date was pushed to Jan. 23, 2015.

Poor weather contributed to further construction delays.

According to CP spokesperson Salem Woodrow, the bridge was slated to be open on Feb. 6.

“The closure will remain until the middle of the week and we will re-evaluate,” she wrote in a Feb. 10 email to the Review.

thmx · #**204** Posted **Feb 26, 2015, 9:15 PM**

hamilton.ca - Construction to begin on Concession Street next week

"HAMILTON, ON – February 26, 2015 – On Monday, March 2nd Hamilton’s Public Works Department will begin work on Concession Street between Upper Wellington Street and Upper Sherman Avenue. The project involves water main upgrades and full road reconstruction including new curbs and sidewalks with Urban Braille. As part of the City’s improved pedestrian mobility plan, two new pedestrian-activated crossing signals and new ladder-style crosswalks will also be installed. "

read more...

thmx · #**205** Posted **Mar 23, 2015, 6:46 PM**

CBC Hamilton: Centennial Parkway construction starts again Monday

Construction crews are back at work Monday on a two-year project on Centennial Parkway that will reduce traffic to one lane.

Public works workers will resume work on the project between King and Barton Streets. It’s the second year of a project that started last year, and this phase is expected to continue until the fall.

Crews are replacing sewers and installing a new trunk water main, and reconstructing the road, including curbs and sidewalks.

The project at the intersection of Centennial Parkway and Queenston Road will run from March to July.

Here’s what it means for traffic:

■Centennial Parkway south of Queenston Road and King Street will be reduced to one lane in each direction. Expect delays.
■There may be minor HSR delays.
■The transit terminal at Eastgate Square will remain open to buses and riders.

Businesses in the area will remain open, but customers should use caution when crossing construction zones.

thistleclub · #**206** Posted **Apr 20, 2015, 2:36 PM**

Work on Mountain Brow Blvd. begins Monday
(Hamilton Mountain News, Gord Bowes, Apr 17 2015)

Reconstruction of Mountain Brow Boulevard begins Monday.

The east Mountain road will be reduced to a single lane of traffic for most of the duration of the project, which will last until November. There may also be temporary road closures, the public works department advises.

The work involves new water mains and services, concrete curbs and an asphalt pathway.

thistleclub · #**207** Posted **Apr 20, 2015, 2:37 PM**

Rymal road widening project resumes on Monday
(Hamilton Mountain News, Mike Pearson, Apr 17 2015)

Hamilton’s public works department will begin a road widening project on Rymal Road between Trinity Church Road and east of Fletcher Road on Monday, April 20.

The project also involves new concrete curbs and sidewalks, along with the installation of catch basins and concrete box culverts crossing Rymal Road at various locations.

Lane restrictions will be required to complete the work and major traffic delays are expected.

HSR transit may also experience some delays.

Most of the work is expected to be completed this December, with top-course asphalt being laid in June 2016.

Glover Road at Rymal will also be fully closed beginning on Monday, April 27, until June 15 for the installation of concrete box culverts crossing Glover Road.

thistleclub · #**208** Posted **Apr 20, 2015, 2:38 PM**

Traffic impacts on Osler Drive in Dundas next week
(Dundas Star News, Apr 17 2015)

Beginning Monday, April 20, Hamilton’s Public Works Department will be completing sewer connections in front of University Plaza in Dundas as part of an ongoing construction project in a nearby neighbourhood.

Lane closures will be required to facilitate this work so traffic will be detoured around the area. Access to University Plaza will be maintained but motorists should expect delays in the area. HSR transit may also experience delays. The work is expected to be completed within two weeks.

thistleclub · #**209** Posted **Apr 20, 2015, 8:07 PM**

Hamilton spending more to watch for falling rocks
(Hamilton Spectator, Matthew Van Dongen, Apr 20 2015)

The city is poised to assess the danger of falling rocks at 17 points on Mountain accesses this summer in an effort to prevent increasing escarpment road closures.

Hamilton budgeted an extra $400,000 for slope stabilization and retaining wall fixes this year to beef up rock scaling and hire a geotechnical consultant to make recommendations, said Brian Hughes, a city technical operations manager.

"We've had some significant rock falls over the past few years, so it behooves us to have an assessment," said Hughes, adding tenders on the contract are about to close.

Read it in full here.

thmx · #**210** Posted **Apr 22, 2015, 5:32 PM**

Quote:

April 22, 2015

@cityofhamilton - Hamilton leading the way to ‘greener’ lighting: 10,000+ LED street lights are coming: http://bit.ly/1EcmVxc

City of Hamilton leading the way to ‘greener’ lighting

HAMILTON, ON – April 22, 2015 – Next week, the City of Hamilton will begin an extensive city-wide street lighting replacement project. More than 10,000 high-pressure sodium cobra head street lights on arterial and collector roadways will be replaced with energy and cost efficient light-emitting diode (LED) lights. The City has been piloting LED technology since 2009 but this is the first major city-wide street lighting conversion project of this scale.

“There are many benefits to using LED street lights,” said Mike Field, project manager of street lighting and electrical engineering with the City of Hamilton. “They will improve visibility and safety on our sidewalks and roadways, consume 50-60 per cent less electricity - resulting in a projected savings of $700,000 per year - and assist in reducing the City’s environmental footprint. These lights are also designed to operate maintenance-free for upwards of 20 years thereby significantly reducing the City’s annual operating costs.”

The replacement work will begin on Pan Am routes first and then lights will be converted in the east end of the city moving westerly. The project will have limited traffic impacts and only short duration rolling lane restrictions will be required to complete the work. The project is expected to wrap up in fall 2015.

Enersource Power Services is the City’s contractor for this project and the lights will be manufactured by General Electric (Evolve LED street lights). The City is approved to receive a $3.5 million energy incentive through the IESO SaveONEnergy incentive program.

thmx · #**211** Posted **Apr 29, 2015, 3:08 AM**

@cityofhamilton - Installation of the 10,000+ LED street lights has begun along Main St W today.

Source

thistleclub · #**212** Posted **May 1, 2015, 6:06 PM**

“Culture of low expectations” created slacker city employees: arbitrator
(The Hamilton Spectator, Matthew Van Dongen, May 1 2015)

Most of the city road workers fired in 2013 for alleged time theft were given a second chance because of a "culture of low expectations" that an arbitrator blamed on a "failure of management."

The city originally fired 29 road workers – nearly a third of the department – following covert surveillance that showed pothole-patching crews doing little work, taking long breaks and lunches and conducting personal errands on work time.

Some of those workers were later reinstated, but 21 grieved their terminations, leading to 56 days of hearings costing the city more than $500,000 and stretching nearly two years.

The arbitrator's 259-page ruling is set to be released Monday, but the Spectator has obtained a copy. In the scathing ruling, arbitrator Lorne Slotnick reinstated 15 of 21 terminated workers even as he emphasized all deserved at least some discipline, in particular for wasting large amounts of time on the job and being dishonest when confronted by their employer.

But he also scolded the city for repeatedly referencing unproven suspicions of asphalt dumping or theft. "These greivors are not angels, but neither are they criminals," he said....
But Slotnick also makes clear there is plenty of blame to go around.

He argued on-the-job slacking was pervasive and "plainly evident had anyone taken the opportunity to examine how the asphalt crews did their jobs."

He suggested, for example, that the $18,000 in covert surveillance showed little that wasn't already obvious in available GPS and pothole-filling records.

He said the "culture of low expectations" was best reflected by one grievor who argued "what I did was what we all do."

"That culture – which is a failure of management – is the main factor in my decision to give most grievors another chance," he wrote in his conclusion.

Read it in full here.

thmx · #**213** Posted **Oct 15, 2015, 7:41 PM**

@cityofhamilton - Road reconstruction in downtown Stoney Creek is looking great, expected to be complete by early December. #HamOnt

King Street Reconstruction - Stoney Creek by City of Hamilton, on Twitter

ScreamingViking · #**214** Posted **Oct 17, 2015, 4:53 AM**

Nice to see that wrapping up. The merchants must be so relieved. But it had to be done.

Dr Awesomesauce · #**215** Posted **Oct 17, 2015, 6:10 AM**

Hamilton's been doing streets pretty much the same way for, what, 20 years? Meh...

matt602 · #**216** Posted **Oct 17, 2015, 5:32 PM**

Yeah, I find it very meh as well. Not many trees, no bike lanes. Stoney Creek's downtown is kinda dinky and small anyway though so theres only so much that can be done.

ScreamingViking · #**217** Posted **Oct 17, 2015, 10:34 PM**

No disagreement on the appeal. I'm simply glad it's complete, because it did create a headache for downtown Stoney Creek businesses and residents.

It's too bad a community with so much history doesn't have a better downtown, even given the small size of that downtown. Past planning and decision-making could have been better, but those blocks are not alone in that respect.