Sharbot Lake Causeway Closure To Be Much Shorter Than Originally Thought

Craig Bakay | Nov 20, 2024

Fears that the Sharbot Lake Causeway Bridge would be closed to replace bearing were somewhat allayed at the regular Central Frontenac Nov. 12 in Sharbot Lake.

Residents’ concerns over the required work would have led to major detours as the primary north-south artery access was repaired have turned out to be minor disruptions as Public Works Manager Steve Gould gave his report.

“I was in contact with (engineer) Kevin Hawley (of Greer Galloway) and he told me that they will close it (the bridge) down for 15 minutes to jack it up,” Gould said. “There will be a little lip when cars drive over it while they replace the bearings.

“They will do all their work and close it down for 15 minutes while they lower it again.”

He said if there is cause for an emergency vehicle to go past during the 15-minute traffic hold, they can get the bridge lowered so the emergency vehicles an pass within five minutes.

The work must be completed this year and the closing date for the work to be completed is Nov. 21, 2024.

“That will make a big difference because I know everybody was thinking about the distance travelled to get around,” said Mayor Frances Smith. “It’s huge.”

509 Closure to be longer

However, the closure of Road 509 near Oso Road will be from 8.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Nov. 22 to replace a culvert.

Public Works Manager Steve Gould said they chose Nov. 22 because it is a PA day for the Limestone District School Board meaning buses will not be running, limiting the impact on traffic.

Gemmill’s Sand and Gravel had the lowest bid of three tenders received at $38,990 excluding HST.

At the beginning of the summer, the road crew battled a sinkhole at the culvert and filled it in while continuing to monitor it in an effort to ensure it would not happen again. The culvert failed at the coupler, which is where the failure in the road and the sinkhole appeared.

To date, the patch work has held up over the summer and most of the fall but it cannot be guaranteed to remain intact throughout the winter and spring seasons.

“There will be a slight impact on our 2024 budget,” Gould said. “With this being an emergency replacement, we will be over budget in our flood control, as the size of this culvert is relatively lard and the work that must be done would include dewatering, guardrail removal, replacement and paving.

“The budget impact would put us over budget by $22,155.88.

“This cost is worth spending, as it could cost us more if the entire culvert failed with the road before we were prepared. It is now saving us more money in the long run.

Honour our Vets Program

CAO/Clerk Cathy MacMunn reported that staff would like to introduce an Honour Our Veterans Program in Central Frontenac much like in Perth and Carleton Place.

She said banners will include a photo, name, military affiliation and the banner sponsor.

“It will be proudly displayed throughout Sharbot Lake (to start) and will spread if the demand and number of banners requires it. Banners would be displayed from Legion Week in September up until Nov. 12,” she said.

Sponsors pay $275 per banner, which includes art proofs and printing of the banners up to and including 30”x60”.

Mayor Frances Smith said: “we want to have a bit of a discussion on this because it needs to be more than just Sharbot Lake for the banners. We have veterans in all of our little villages so whatever program we come up with should probably be phased in so that it spreads throughout until we get everything done if we choose to do it.”

Construction report

Chief Building Official Andy Dillon reported that construction value is up.

“Permit numbers, if you take the sewage systems off, they’re roughly average over the last three years but there are some large waterfront homes being constructed and that’s put the permit values up,” he said.

Construction value to date in 2024 is $8,138,340 compared to $12,461,730 over the same period in 2023 and $14,719,995 in 2022.