As water main repairs near, uncertainty remains for affected residents

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Bowness residents who will be impacted by repairs to the Bearspaw south water feeder main are bracing for major disruptions, while also worrying that the severity of construction effects remains clouded.

But on Thursday, a city official said details regarding the impacts of the work — that will begin in earnest Tuesday — will be forthcoming soon.

For now, concerns and questions about access to their street haven’t been fully addressed, said Christina Pilarski, who lives on the 8300 block of 33rd Avenue N.W.

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“We still don’t know if we’ll have access to our driveways,” said Pilarski, adding the south side of her street, where she resides, has no back alley.

“(City officials) have talked to those most affected, who’ll have their lawns dug. But for the majority of us, we don’t have any clarity.”

Those on her street might have to park on nearby 34th Avenue but aren’t sure if there’ll be space in Bowness, “where parking is at a premium.”

Residents seeking more information for city workers

Pilarski said she and her neighbours have been asking city workers on their street for more information. She’s also wondering if door-to-door mail delivery and pickup of garbage and recycling will be impacted, or if their water supply will be disrupted.

“We’ve been told we should have water, but nothing’s concrete,” said Pilarski.

Those questions should be answered at an information session on Friday for affected residents only, said Francois Bouchart, the city’s director of capital priorities and investment.

But he acknowledged the work that’s expected to last a month will bring considerable disruption, particularly to residents of 33rd Avenue N.W., where 13 of 21 repair jobs will be located.

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“The upcoming water restrictions infrastructure work are a major disruption for Calgarians, especially for those in the immediate vicinity of the repair work,” he said.

“We’ve heard loud and clear the concerns from both residents and businesses and the city has been actively engaging with them at the work sites.”

At the upcoming information session, there’ll be technical engineers and representatives of the city’s business relations team attending to provide information on parking, waste bin locations, pedestrian and vehicle access, and construction details, said Bouchart.

Later next week, work will commence at sites at Shouldice Park in Montgomery, which won’t impact traffic on 16th Avenue N.W., he said.

Parts of 33rd Avenue between 76th and 87th Street, said Bouchart, will be closed to facilitate repair work safely.

Shutting down the water feeder main will move the entire city back to Stage 4 water restrictions until Sept. 23, but it won’t leave residents in Bowness with dry taps, said Bouchart.

“The water they’ll be able to access is not provided directly off the feeder main. This is a localized water main that then feeds into individual homes,” he said. “In terms of temporary services, if it’s needed, this will be surface piping we’ll put into place.”

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Another 33rd Avenue resident said contrary to city claims, she hasn’t been contacted by any city officials about what is ahead and is worried about her home pottery business due to access issues.

“I have people planning to come weeks in advance and now I have to tell my clients we’re cancelling workshops,” said Melba Seto.

But she accepted that the repair works needs to be done and is happy it’s not being left for later.

“We can get upset if we want, but this stuff is always going to happen … I’m happy to get it fixed because my house would be the first one to be flooded if the pipe broke,” said Seto.

Outdoor water restrictions begin Monday

After a monitoring device found additional weak spots along the northwest feeder main earlier this summer, the city made the decision to fix them now — a move that’s taking Calgarians to Stage 4 water restrictions. That means there will be an outdoor water use ban and residents will be urged to reduce their indoor consumption.

That indoor reduction is voluntary and it applies to businesses who are once again being asked to do their part — a challenge the city’s small brewers are confronting and can meet, said Andrew Bullied, founder of Annex Ales and Soda.

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During the last Stage 4 phase of restrictions, he said his business reduced its water use by 36 per cent, saving of 90,000 litres, he said.

“We’re fully committed to continuing these practices for the duration of the class four restrictions and are exploring ways of making some of these changes permanent,” said Bullied.

“I encourage all small breweries in Calgary to adopt similar water-saving measures.”

BKaufmann@postmedia.com

X (Twitter) @BillKaufmannjrn

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