Calgarians in the northwest community of Bowness are preparing for their street to be transformed into a construction zone following word a problem line in the city’s water system is in need of imminent repairs.
City officials announced Wednesday an inspection of the 10.5-km Bearspaw feeder main revealed 16 new areas of weakness in the pipe, which would require the pipe to be shut down for maintenance, a temporary return to strict water rationing rules.
The bulk of the concerning sections of pipe run under 33rd Avenue N.W. in Bowness, with others detected along Parkdale Boulevard and 16 Avenue N.W.
Construction is set to begin on Aug. 28, with a return to Stage 4 water restrictions two days prior.
“We’re sad about it, but it’s infrastructure for Calgary that needs to be dealt with,” said Roland Queitsch, a Bowness resident who lives along where the repairs are set to take place.
It comes two months after a section of the Bearspaw feeder main ruptured on June 5, which led to emergency repairs and more than a month of stringent water restrictions as well as a city-wide fire ban.
Similar to when the line first broke and five other hotspots were discovered, officials said repairs would be round the clock until they’re complete at the end of September.
However, crews won’t be replacing the problemed sections of pipe, but rather using steel and concrete to reinforce the line.
According to the city, the work will include exposing the pipe through excavation, building a reinforced steel cage around the weakened sections, pouring concrete, and then backfilling the excavation.
“I’m not happy about it, that’s for sure,” nearby Bowness resident Tim Sutherland told Global News.
“It just seems like something like this should’ve been maintenance.”
But residents living in the area said the city hasn’t provided definitive details on how they’ll be impacted by the construction.
“Our concern mostly is the lack of information at this point,” Queitsch said.
Ward 1 Coun. Sonya Sharp, who represents the area, said she understands the concerns from residents, and hopes the city can release more information on detours and disruptions in the coming days.
“The hope is that we get in here, get doing what we need to get done, and get out, and get things back to normal,” Sharp said. “I know there’s inspections that need to continue to happen, but let’s hope the impact to Calgarians is absolutely minimal.”
In a statement to Global News, the City of Calgary said it’s currently in the process of developing its construction plans, and “will be able to provide much more details to residents, businesses and the general public” in the lead up to construction.
On Thursday, Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek convened a meeting with councillors, community associations and business improvement areas in the Bowness and Montgomery area to discuss the upcoming construction work.
The mayor’s office confirmed Gondek also met with various businesses in the area as well.