Planning problem leaves city on the hook for road re-construction on Chevrier Boulevard

A portion of a large roadwork project in the Fort Garry Industrial Park is already being redone before it’s completed, Global News has learned.

A section of Chevrier Boulevard from Waverley Street to Hervo Street will have to be widened to accommodate larger truck traffic.

The adjustments were identified early in the construction process, said Ken Allen, the city’s Public Works Department communications officer.

“Originally that project was planned for just regular truck traffic and when we did our public engagement back in January we took in feedback at that time, but we didn’t hear about the oversized trucks until after that,” he said.

“Once we learned there was a lot of oversized truck traffic utilizing Chevrier, we recognized we needed to adjust the plan to accommodate everybody.”

One of the key intersections that needs adjusting is the Hervo Street intersection where Harris Transport has semi trucks going to and from their business.

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Angelo Cavadas is the owner of A and V Drive-In right at the intersection. He said it’s always been a hot spot for semi trucks and was surprised the road hadn’t been widened earlier.

“When they were pouring the concrete I went up to them and asked them, why wouldn’t you make this wider? Semis are constantly turning here and wrecking this section of the road and he said that’s what was called for in the specs,” Cavadas said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "When they were pouring the concrete I went up to them and asked them, why wouldn't you make this wider? Semis are constantly turning here and wrecking this section of the road and he said that's what was called for in the specs," Cavadas said.

Cavadas said he’s frustrated more work means even more money out of his bottom line.

“My business is down over 50 per cent,” he said, noting the restaurant is closing down for two weeks. It’s cheaper to have the doors shut than it is to be open, he added.

Reconstruction will happen in the coming weeks, said the city. The project is scheduled to be completed before the end of 2018.

Since the adjustments to the plan were requested by the city, they’re on the hook for any price differences.

“My understanding is that we found out about the adjustments that were needed early enough where it wasn’t a major impact to the project so timing was good in terms of recognizing that these oversized trucks needed to be factored in,” Allen said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "My understanding is that we found out about the adjustments that were needed early enough where it wasn't a major impact to the project so timing was good in terms of recognizing that these oversized trucks needed to be factored in," Allen said.

There’s no word on how much extra the adjustments will cost, but the entire project is budgeted for $7.5 million.