Detours continue, but end is in sight, says Lac La Biche construction boss

Rob McKinley Sep 12, 2024 4:52 PM
Heavy equipment and construction fences are part of many neighbourhoods in and around Lac La Biche this summer. ▲
Work continues on the current phase of the Main Street revitalization project. Sidewalks, concrete curbs and gutters were being installed in recent days.▲
Utility work was being done along 99 Avenue earlier in the week. The project blocked off the roadway that leads to residential and commercial properties on the south side of the CN railyard. The utility issues were first noticed a week earlier when leaks were identified in underground lines. ▲
A natural gas rehabilitation project in the back lane of 101A Avenue from 105 Street to 103 Street is one of the more recent construction projects. The work has a budget of $200,000 and is expected to be complted by the end of September. ▲
A water bomber aircraft flies past a track-hoe that has been part of the ongoing construction around Lac La Biche's Bold Center where a $49 million aquatic centre is being built.▲
The 104 Avenue project has blocked two residential streets.▲
Work continues on the McArthur Park project, with grass, trees, dirt and concrete structures taking shape within the $7 million makeover. Here, a local A&T Construction crew pours concrete for the proposed skatepark that will be part of the project. Complete of the project is scheduled for the end of this year. The budget for this year's portion of the three-year construction project is $3.8 million. According to the municipality's most recent capital funding document, the current phase of the project is about $130,000 over budget.▲
Lac La Biche County peace officers and RCMP have been monitoring traffic in and around the busy construction areas. Speeding fines can be doubled in some areas when workers are present. ▲
A re-paving project along Lac La Biche's truck route forced detours and traffic snarls near the four-way-stop on Highway 36. Work on the project is expected to continue through the next week. The work is not part of Lac La Biche County's current capital plan. The municipality and provincial highway authority share the roadway that links Highways 663, 55 and 36.▲
Crews were working on the foundations of the drive-through lanes at the Lac La Biche Tim Horton's this week▲
Residents and motorists have been affected by a busy construction season in and around the Lac La Biche community over the summer months. ▲
Weather has played a role in this year's busy construction schedule. A relatively wet start to the construction season saw crews struggling. Hot weather through much of the main summer weeks helped work get back on track. ▲
More construction fences blocking streets along 101 A Street near the Lac La Biche legion. Acess to the entire block has been restricted due to the ongoing water and sewer replacement project. ▲
Pedestrians have also been inconvenienced by much of the construction in and around the Lac La Biche hamlet over the summer months. In recent days, concrete sidewalks have been prepared for a one-block section of the downtown core that has been blocked to traffic since May. ▲
A portion of Lac La Biche's dowtown is off limits to traffic as work continues on the $32.5 million Main Street Revitalization project. Work began in late April and is expected to run into October along a stretch of the downtown core between 102 Street and 101 Street. Detours into back alleys and side streets have been in place since since the project began. The current phase of construction is the second part of a three phase project that will continue in 2025 to replace aging underground water and sewer utility lines and upgrade the overall look of surface level features. ▲
The construciton project on 104 Avenue to replace water and sewer utilities has been ongoing since late May. The project has closed a section of residential roadways from 103 Street to 101 Street. The project is expected to be completed later in September. The project has a $2.4 million budget.▲
Lac La Biche County crews surround a fire hydrant being used as part of a temporary water system along 101 Street. The water disruption is due to an ongoing construction project to replace a watermain and old underground utilities on 104 Avenue. ▲

LAC LA BICHE - Lac La Biche County's current capital projects document is a list of 38 entries, tallying about $40 million in spending for the 2024 construction year.

The projects range from $30,000 playground swings at the Birch Grove playground and $25,000 subdivision entrance signs to the $9.5 million budgeted for this year's progress on the ongoing $32.5 million Main Street Revitalization Project and the $2.4 million spent on the 105 Street underground utility service replacements.

Lac La Biche County's infrastructure boss Ali Memon says work for the most part is on time and on budget for the wide-range of projects.

"As far as the projects are concerned, I think the projects are running OK. On time and on schedule as well as on budget, or within budget in other words.

End in sight by end of September - maybe?

At a meeting with Lac La Biche County council on September 3, Memon said council and residents will have less construction detours to deal with by the end of September... maybe sooner.

He said the 105 Street project – a watermain and utility pipe replacement which began in June and has disrupted traffic and access to some businesses – will be completed before the end of the month. 

"Hopefully in the next two week's time – hopefully before – it will be done," said Memon.

Despite saying projects are on-schedule, another utility line replacement along 104 Avenue between 103 Street and 101 Street near the Lac La Biche Legion may go slightly beyond its September 30 projected completion date, Memon admitted.

"The deadline on that project has been September 30... it might go a week or so but we are trying to complete it by that schedule date," he said, adding that communication channels between himself, his department, the municipality and affected residents will be open throughout the process.

One smooth road

With the construction deadline for the current phase of the Main Street upgrades set for the end of October, Memon said the final part of that project for this year will be the paving of a single lift of asphalt over the roadway. The single layer of asphalt will last through the winter months and through next year.  A single lift of asphalt is still covering the first phase of the downtown revitalization project that was completed last year.

There is an option to put down a second layer of asphalt on last year's section of roadway, but Lac La Biche County Mayor Paul Reutov said he would prefer to wait until after the third and final phase of the downtown construction project is completed at the end of 2025. Then, he said, on continuous lift can be put across each section of the downtown roadway, reducing seams and uneven surfaces.

"I would suggest to do second lift at the end of phase three. It's holding up, so we could wait," Reutov said. 

A full accounting of each construction project, including progress and how much has been spent of the annual budget, can be found through a www.lakelandtoday.ca link to the county's website.

Return to LakelandToday.ca