At our last staff meeting, staff discussed the plethora of misinformation and half truths floating around Rossland, regarding the Columbia Avenue and Washington Street “re-do.” In an effort to set the record straight, staff decided to use the weekly REC column (Recreation, Education & Community) to bring everyone up to date and debunk a few myths.
It is well known that the Ministry of Transportation (MOT) has been planning to pave Columbia Avenue. In co-operation with MOT and in order to take advantage of the opportunity to have the paving paid for provincially, the city has carried out an assessment on the valves, pipes, water and sewer connections existing below Columbia Avenue. (If MOT is paying, why don’t we fix our old pipes?)
Using this initial assessment, a rough cost of the project was developed. The city also thought that if MOT is going to pave, this would be a good opportunity to look at any changes to Columbia Avenue.
So, in 2010 the city undertook three design charettes (public input sessions) on how Columbia Avenue might look in the next five to 15 years. The ideas gathered at the charettes were used to do a very basic conceptual drawing of the streets.
As the city got deeper into our investigation of the 50-60 year old infrastructure, we also took a detailed look into Washington Street and its infrastructure (the water/sewer pipes, etc., under the pavement.)
The city chose to include Washington Street as part of the plan to improve Rossland’s infrastructure, as it is a main road in the community, in hopes of reducing the costs to taxpayers by piggybacking it with MOT and our Columbia Avenue project.
The next step is where we are at today. Council approved an Alternate Approval Process (AAP) to provide the city with the legal authority from the taxpayers of Rossland for the city to obtain funding not to exceed $6 million.
Without this approval, the city cannot start the detailed engineering and design work required to determine the actual costs for this project.
This detailed engineering and design work will tell us what needs to be done: the sizes of pipes; what valves and connections need to be replaced; how to control surface water (snow and rainwater); pedestrian traffic flow (no need to run across four lanes!); the underground pipe replacements required for sewer and water; as well as the water/sewer connections leading up to properties.
The cost for the design and engineering work is estimated at $500,000 for a project of this scale. Regardless of whether the Columbia/Washington project goes ahead, the engineering still needs to be done!
Once we complete this detail work, council will then assess whether we can proceed to complete the critical underground work on Columbia Avenue and Washington Street or scale the project back to be only a bit, half, three quarters — who knows?
Council could decide to complete some portions in the near future. Council also has the option at this time to go to a referendum which would delay the engineering and risk losing the cost benefits of partnering with MOT for the Columbia/Washington project.
Important things to note:
• Paving and one-half of the cost of curbs for Columbia Avenue will be paid for by the Ministry of Transportation.
• Approximately 75 per cent of the drainage costs for Columbia Avenue will be paid for by MOT.
• MOT is also footing the bill for design and engineering for Columbia Avenue for storm system, roads (paving), curbs and sidewalks.
If money is still available other surface work such as streetscapes, kiosks, parking modifications etc can be considered. This type of surface work can be also done at a later time when budget is provided.
It is imperative to have a long-term vision of how the streets might look if we had the funds required or if some level of government gave us a grant towards the surface work.
The city is applying for three grants thus far which could potentially offset up to one-half of the project cost as stated in the AAP. If the grants are successful the taxpayer costs will be greatly reduced.
If the grants are not successful, council will again assess whether it is prudent to increase taxes between $132 annually to as high as $188 annually per homeowner for 20 years.
The city understands that this might still be too high a tax burden for our taxpayers but also recognizes that Columbia Avenue and Washington Street, our two major arteries, are the most significant and the highest priorities for major infrastructure improvements. We have to do them sometime and we want to make sure that we replace the 50-60 year old pipes to avoid digging up brand new pavement in the very near future.
With the successful completion of the arena project, the city has demonstrated that not all borrowing permission sought from the taxpayers is utilized as requested. We had asked for up-front borrowing permission of $1.2 million for the arena project. Our final borrowing will be $250,000, to be paid $50,000 per year over the next five years.
The project expenses came in at just over $1 million, with up to $750,000 coming from reserves and grants, proving the city is fiscally responsible and respectful of its residents by taking advantage of such grants.
City council, administration and staff are working hard to ensure that longevity, livability and fiscal forethought is in place to keep Rossland sustainable. Additional information about the Columbia/Washington project is available at city hall and on the city’s website.
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The Spring Recreation Brochure starts production this week. The guide covers the months of April, May and June. If you would like to run a program, please contact the Recreation Department to discuss opportunities. Community organizations are welcome and encouraged to contact our office with information about your upcoming events and registration dates.
All information, including program details, must be in our office by Feb. 15 in order to make the publication deadline.
With spring in the air, the local foodies are starting to think about gardens. Check out the rosslandfood.com site for information about upcoming lectures, movies, bee workshops and seed swaps.
Do you have a young person who wants to play soccer? Youth soccer in our area is huge, and is run by the Kootenay South Youth Soccer Association. Due to overwhelming popularity and sheer numbers, their registration is early this year. Registrations will not be accepted after Feb. 25 and are done online. To register, please visit www.kootenaysouthsoccer.com.
The Tuesday / Sunday co-ed rec hockey nights have been so popular (and full!) we’ve added a new night to help get you on the ice. The extra ice time starts this Saturday at 8:45 p.m. Dates and times over the next few weeks are; Saturdays at 8:45pm — Feb. 5, 12, and 19. Spaces fill quickly and there is a maximum number of players per night. If you would like to play, please ensure you arrive early!
