Hamilton city councillors approved adding $1,561,000 to the budget for road reconstruction to expand sewer capacity underneath Dewitt Road between Highway 8 and Barton Street in Stoney Creek.
The expanded capacity is needed to both address present capacity constraints and to respond to development plans along Highway 8.
An August 2019 engineering report found portions of the existing sewers are already overcapacity.
The 375 mm portion of pipe which runs from Highway 8 to just north of Juniper Drive is already overcapacity.
The pipe expands to 450mm in front of Orchard Park Secondary School. This 450 mm section is nearing its capacity between approximately MacIntosh Drive to Dupont Street, where it expands to 525 mm at the northern edge of the Our Lady of Peace Catholic Elementary School.
Half of the expansion will be funded from Development Charges, and half funded from the existing rate budget.
The 2019 Development Charges Study determined half the expansion need is attributable to existing uses and half is to facilitate new development.
The sewers north of Barton Street, which run to the Sanitary Sewer Truck under Seaman Street will require further expansion in the future..
In 2018, a developer initially applied to build a Long Term Care complex of three buildings (applications files UHOPA-18-025 & ZAC-18-059) that would house 1,075 persons.
The Highway 8 application was amended to a four-storey 224-bed LTC and two rental buildings of eight and nine storeys with a total of 260 dwelling units. Council approved the application in July 2021.
Following the 2018 application, the City commissioned a study of wastewater sewers on both Dewitt Road and Millen Road. Dewitt was determined to be the better outflow option.
“I’m really pleased that we are anticipating this going forward this summer,” Ward 10 Clr Maria Pearson stated at Public Works Committee on Monday.
The overall budget for the sewers and road reconstruction on Dewitt Road is $4,173,238 (not including contingency and non-refundable HST).
