More bridge, fewer boats
North Lake bridge repairs start in August, fishermen concerned about space
NORTH LAKE – Construction on the 50-year-old bridge in North Lake will begin on Aug. 12.
At a public meeting held at the Eastern Kings Community Center on July 25, Neil Lawless, engineer overseeing the bridge, spoke on the bridge’s design and how structure replacement will affect the community’s harbour.
Several fishermen were present, and some voiced concerns with the current design.
“A bridge over troubled waters,” one said before the meeting started.
The bridge, constructed in 1969, currently has five piers. Over the years it has deteriorated, and safety precautions were taken, like in 2016, when weight restrictions were enforced.
“Because we lost a couple piles,” Lawless said. “We had to replace a lot of piles over the years.”
The first steps in designing a new bridge were taken in late 2018. This March, it was reduced to single-lane traffic.
One complication with the design process was the bridge’s slight curve from one end to another. One of Lawless’ proposed designs took the number of piers down to three, but he realized it wouldn’t work due to the curve.
“There’s issues with cracking” he said. “It’s not a small project.”
The current design has just two piers, which should help resolve cracking concerns. It’ll be made of reinforced concrete, a little taller and wider, and there’ll be 68 feet of space between the two piers, as opposed to the current bridge’s 24-foot clearance space.
“More room for the boats to go underneath the bridge.”
The project budget is $3.5 million, with Highfield Construction having secured the bid in early July to handle construction. Once construction begins, it’ll be inaccessible until mid-December, then temporarily reopened until some final touches are made around June 2020.
During construction, there will be a 6.5-km detour, with the road on the East Point side of the bridge being inaccessible. Boat traffic will be permitted during construction, with the exception of a short period sometime this fall when temporary girders have to be installed.
“So the captains will have to take some reasonable precautions,” he said. “Wouldn’t want any girders falling on people.”
The new bridge should last about 75 years. While community members recognize it’s time the bridge is replaced, some fishermen said the current design will cost them three berthing spots.
Glen Cameron, chairman of North Lake’s harbour authority, said because the bridge’s two piers are angled slightly outward from each other there won’t be enough room between them and the wharf to park and berth boats from.
Three fewer spots could make the overcrowded harbour even more crowded.
“It’s like trying to park two freightliners where you can only park a Corolla,” he said. “It’s taking up extra room.”
The harbour authority was told about the switch from a three- to two-pier design. According to Cameron, they made their preference clear, but it wasn’t acknowledged.
“They picked the three-pier design because it was more functional.”
Lawless has been working with the authority throughout the design process, but at this point, it’s looking like North Lake is getting a two-pier bridge.
“That’s just a part of doing design work,” Lawless said. “I was unaware of any berthing concerns.”