The ground work has been completed to house 49 workers here for up to two years to help build Hydro One’s new 500 kilovolt power line from the Bruce power facility near Kincardine to its switching station in Milton.
The Bruce to Milton line is the largest expansion to Ontario’s transmission system in 20 years. It will run 180 kilometres and pass through Wellington North and Erin, and is situated close to Fergus.
The company houses some of its workers in Hanover, and it received permission last year from Centre Wellington council to have a camp for its workers in the industrial zone at the northeast section of Fergus, at Gregson Court, just off of the north end of Gartshore Street. Gravel for the site has now been spread before the housing is moved on site.
The $695-million transmission-line project is estimated to have up to 250 workers at the peak of construction.
Valard Construction is building the towers and stringing the lines, and project manager Mike Ries said in an interview on July 29 the camp will house workers “until at least this time next year.”
He estimated the work is about 50 per cent completed, but he also noted that it has not been done in a straight line. Instead, he said, work is “just scattered.”
Ries said the company had hoped to have the workers housed in Fergus by the start of June but ran into some permit difficulties with the township.
He said the towers are under assembly, and when that is completed by the end of the year, helicopters will help in stringing the lines, as well as using machinery to lift them into proper position.
Ries said the line will run “just north of Fergus” which means the new base is a handy location. He said, “We do rotate crews. They work so many days, with so many days off.”
Those workers, including power linemen, operating engineers, teamsters and labourers are hired according to the Hydro One union guidelines, and they come from all over Canada. He added many of them are from Ontario.
Centre Wellington will benefit through the collection of $4,350 in rent per month, a $35,000 service connection fee, and hold a site restoration fee of $40,000 for the duration of the camp.
The effect of the temporary zoning bylaw would be to allow the housing in an industrial zone.
The housing project consists of lodging, a cookery, office, mechanical shop, parking, equipment storage and a fuel depot.
The zoning amendment was passed because there was no provision in the township’s current bylaw for residential uses on the industrial land.
The temporary use could last up to three years, and if a longer term is needed, township planner Brett Salmon told council last year a new amendment would be needed and the company can reapply.
One major concern about the power line for Orton residents is that it passes directly over their community park.
Ries said the company is still in negotiations with municipal officials and Orton residents about the park.
Hydro One spokesman Dave Bauer said on July 29, “We have been working with the council and the town to find a suitable location. We’re close to a deal. We are always committed to working with the community to find a suitable solution.”
The corridor for the line ranges in width from 53 to 61 metres. The Bruce to Milton line is the largest expansion to Ontario’s transmission system in 20 years.
The move was necessitated by the addition of two units at the Bruce complex, as well as several new wind energy projects coming on line in the near future.
The camp will be self-contained and have showers and a recreation area.
According to Hydro One, Bruce Power is returning two nuclear units to service over the next few years, and about 700 megawatts of wind development projects have been identified in the Bruce area to date, with another 1,000 of future renewable energy potential, so the line is much needed.
Ries said Valard is hoping to have the entire line completed by the end of 2012.
Valard has been in business since 1978, and has built transmission lines through mountain passes, vast expanses of muskeg and the rock of the Canadian Shield, and its website stated, “We can build anything … anywhere.”
It has offices in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg and Toronto.
