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Defective Norfolk bridges lose priority status

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Federal agencies have emerged as a wild card as Norfolk County gets its ducks in a row for the Long Point Causeway project.

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Port Dover Coun. Amy Martin says local MP Diane Finley’s help may have to be enlisted after hearing this week that Norfolk will need permits from several federal agencies to perform upgrades in the environmentally-sensitive area between Port Rowan and Long Point.

The causeway itself is 3.7 kilometres long. It represents the dividing line between the Big Creek Marsh and Long Point Bay. In an update to Norfolk council Tuesday, Jason Godby, Norfolk’s interim general manager of public works, said every inch cuts through sensitive ecosystems and habitat areas.

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Agency approvals needed include the Canadian Wildlife Service, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and Environment Canada.

“They recognize this is a unique situation,” Godby said. “They are not used to dealing with a situation like this. At this point, I have no firm direction on whether these permits will be delayed. This is critical infrastructure and we need to get it addressed.”

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The county wants to get to work on the $12-million rebuild by September. Godby is unable to say whether federal permits will be in place in time for this.

The causeway update came during a discussion of Norfolk bridge projects.

In 2019, Norfolk County was broadsided by a number of infrastructure emergencies. Most all will cost millions of dollars to address. Many are associated with water and sewer capacity.

The discussion also occurred two weeks before a 2020 budget session that the public has been warned will be challenging and potentially unpleasant.

This prompted council on Jan. 14 to revisit scheduled bridge projects, two of which have been suspended until further notice. These include:

The Concession A bridge west of Port Rowan. Concession A between Highway 59 and South Walsingham West Quarter Line Road has not been a through-road since the bridge was closed 12 years ago. Estimated cost of repairs is $2 million. The project would likely cost more because the road has not been maintained on a regular basis since the closure. The estimated cost of removing the pony truss bridge, which was installed at a cost of $1,200 in 1912, is $150,000.

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The Porter Bridge on Marburg Road between Lynn Valley Road and St. John’s Road East. Council Tuesday directed staff to investigate closing the road permanently to through traffic while granting affected farmers an easement on the road allowance. The bridge was closed in 2010. The estimated cost of repairs is $1 million.

The Gilbert Road culvert south of Radical Road north-east of Port Ryerse. The Long Point Region Conservation Authority supports removing the old culvert as this would improve drainage in the area and lower the hazard rating on the Hay Creek Dam nearby. Cancelling repairs would save the county $725,000. However, Mayor Kristal Chopp pointed out that provincial funds may be available to fix the structure and that Norfolk should investigate funding opportunities so the county “doesn’t leave money on the table.” Vittoria Coun. Chris Van Paassen, who lives on Radical Road near Gilbert Road, said grant programs are worth looking into.

“It’s not going to fall down in the next week or two,” Van Paassen said.

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