GORE BAY—It’s definitely been a case of so far, so good as far as the downtown revitalization project in Gore Bay.
“We finished pouring the concrete for the curbs and are close to the halfway mark in the project,” said Alexander Dawson, inspector contract administrator with exp. Services Inc. in an interview The Expositor had with he and Will Schickluna-Pierce, assistant to the town manager for Gore Bay last week. “Once we are finished curbs on the east side (of Meredith Street) then we will be moving on in the next couple of weeks to the sidewalks and the lockstone (boulevard) which should be finalized by the end of July.”
“We’ve been working with Alex and exp. and things have been good,” said Mr. Schickluna-Pierce. “And MCA (Contracting Ltd.) have been great. They have done everything they can to accommodate the businesses and residents.”
“We’ve heard very few complaints,” said Mr. Schickluna-Pierce.
Once work has been completed on the east side of Meredith Street, work will commence on the west side of the street, with the same process followed.
“The first digging started on May 21,” said Mr. Dawson.
Mr. Dawson said as far as any major concerns with the construction, “No, to be honest with you, things have gone smoothly. Things are interesting when you are dealing with an older town water system, but things have gone well so far.”
Mr. Dawson said, “the new light structures will likely come at the end of the project and the new trees will be planted at the very end of the project as well as landscaping,” he said, noting the original target for getting the downtown revitalization completed was the end of October, and so far, everything is on schedule.
Overall, what is included in the project are for trees with tree cells, new street lighting and light stands and banners, low profile curbs to make them more accessible, new sidewalks, lockstone boulevards, new asphalt on the street and replacing water sewer connections.
The project has been in process for the past two years. Annette Clarke and Carolyn Campbell of LAMBAC carried out the grant work applications. Funding was approved from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation and other sources. The town then tendered out the construction project with MCA Contracting Ltd. selected as the contractor for $2,390,919.41.
While construction has taken place on the east side of Meredith Street, pedestrian areas have been in place on the other side of the street and pedestrian access has been provided to businesses on the east side of the street. The boulevards should be familiar to local residents as they are the same as those installed on Dawson Street last year.
Greenery in the form of autumn blaze maple trees (which grow 3-5 metres per year) will be planted, while on the boulevards to Meredith Street Nordic stone will be primary stone used with midnight charcoal border either side of the boulevard.
With the new water connections, water has been maintained to the businesses and residents affect during construction by a temporary water line.
“It is an exciting project,” stated Jason Quinlan, town manager and clerk, recently. He pointed out the last time the town had a project of this magnitude was in the 1980s. “MCA Construction has been welcoming and helpful. They have done everything to accommodate businesses and residents as much as they can and to make this project as seamless as possible.”
“It’s exciting to imagine what all of this will look like when it is all done,” added Mr. Quinlan.
“We can’t say enough good things about MCA,” said Mr. Dawson. “They have been very organized, and have kept the site clean, organized and have worked very efficiently. They have been very good to work with.”
To follow the progress of the project, Mr. Schickluna-Pierce is providing a weekly update on the town website.
