The upcoming 2020 Street Improvement Program (SIP), announced on July 7, was awarded to Rubydale Asphalt for the amount of $1,044,674 according to the press release.
Major areas of repair and improvement would focus on repairs downtown, including resurfacing the parking lot by Shopper Drug Mart, and repaving Cedar Crescent. To keep costs under the approved SIP budget of $914,000 a number of projects have been deferred to a future year.
“If citizens have concerns (about roads and other infrastructure), we encourage them to make use of our SeeClickFix app,” said Dave Brett, Director of Infrastructure Services. He added these identified concerns are assessed and added to a list of proposed areas for future projects.
SIP itself is funded by the Town of Drumheller for municipal projects and is evaluated annually for upcoming projects, Brett said. He added unless concerns pose a safety issue, the town has a period of two to five years to address the complaint and they often try to target specific areas and group patching projects together to maximize efficiency.
One of the major focal points of the project is repaving Cedar Crescent.
Brett said residents in the area can expect some disruptions for access and will receive notice ahead of any construction. He added that construction would still need to allow access for emergency vehicles to the area.
Several citizens commented their concerns on Facebook over communities not included in the improvements following the press release. One area Brett acknowledges residents would like to see on the SIP docket is Newcastle.
“There are other factors that go into choosing future project areas,” Brett said. The risk of flooding and heavy equipment use on the road can incur additional costs and work, and he noted Newcastle will be considered for future improvements following the completion of flood mitigation projects.
Another major focus of the project would include work from 2nd Street SW from Railway Avenue to 2nd Avenue. Brett noted this road is owned by Alberta Transportation and, “Funds (for these) come directly from Alberta Transportation for these improvements and must be approved first by them.” Rubydale Asphalt would need to adhere to Alberta Transportation regulations to minimize disruptions on these roads, and work would need to be completed outside the busy tourism season to avoid disruptions and closures.
The 2020 Street Improvements Project is
available at www.drumheller.ca and residents can notify the town of any infrastructure concerns by phone or by using the SeeClickFix app.
