Guelph-Eramosa council announced its intent to apply for infrastructure funding at both the Sept. 8 and Sept. 21 meetings.
Infrastructure Ontario
At the Sept. 8 meeting council approved the public works department’s recommendation to submit an expression of interest for the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund to rehabilitate the bridge on Mill Road and for the reconstruction of the 2.5km stretch of Mill Road from Jones Baseline to Watson Road.
Both were identified as one-to five-year priorities on the most recent bridge inspection report (2014) and roads needs study (2013) respectively.
The preliminary cost estimate of the combined project is $858,000; however, the value could change based on the results of geotechnical investigations.
Director of public works Harry Niemi suggested applying for 50 per cent coverage from the fund. If the application is accepted the remainder of the project could be funded from bridge and road reserves, which have a combined balance of $470,000.
Small Communities Fund
At the Sept. 21 meeting council approved Niemi’s request to apply for the pre-screening stage of the Small Communities Fund.
The water and wastewater study completed in July identified concerns with the Main Street watermain between Guelph Street and Coblestone because it was aging and at risk of failure and it’s the only connection between north and south Rockwood, Niemi said.
“As all fire protection for Rockwood is provided by storage in the standpipe on Hampson Crescent located in south Rockwood, a break in this section would be a significant issue in the event of an emergency,” the report to council said.
The small communities fund would go towards a watermain connection between Valley Road and Richardson Street to provide another connection.
The township is requesting two thirds government funding for an amount of $420,000 and the muncipality would contribute $210,000.
