Integrated Road, Sewer and Watermain for Canterbury Avenue, Arch Street and Plesser Street

Project description

Within the Elmvale area, there have been clustered areas of flooding and basement backups. The project objective is to realign and lower sewers in some these areas to help alleviate future flooding. Due to the proximity to the sewer, the watermain will need to be replaced and the full road will be reconstructed with new sidewalks, cycle lanes and enhanced traffic calming features.

Project timing

Design completion: winter 2024
Construction start: October 2024
Construction completion: summer 2026

Timing for the project will be confirmed closer to construction.

Project budget

Total project budget: $21.6 million (subject to 2023 budget approval) 

Public engagement

An online engagement opportunity was held in February 2021. Project information and preliminary design drawings are posted within this project web page. The public was able to review the designs and provide written comments on the proposed works.

A second online public information session was held in March/April 2024 to present the design drawings to the public. 

Accessibility

Accessibility is an important consideration for the City of Ottawa. The City makes every effort to provide access through and around construction sites. If you require a disability-related accommodation, please contact the project team. Accessible formats and communication supports are available, upon request.

Safety

The City of Ottawa is committed to safety in and around project sites. The project team continues to work closely with the industry and to comply with recommendations provided by municipal, provincial and federal health officials, as well as the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.

For further information, please contact the City Project Manager.
For any emergency outside normal working hours, please call the City at 3-1-1.

City Project Manager
Houssam Alchawa, P.Eng.
City of Ottawa
100 Constellation Drive, Ottawa, ON K2G 6J8
Tel.: 613-580-2424, ext. 25692

Contract Administrator
Adam Goudreau
Morrison Hershfield / Stantec
2932 Baseline Road, Ottawa, ON K2H 1B1
Tel.: 613-739-2910, ext. 1022243

City On-Site Inspector
Mark Wheaton
City of Ottawa
100 Constellation Drive, Ottawa, ON K2G 6J8
Cell: 613-769-2379

Contractor Representative
Caylan Edwards
Green Infrastructure Partners Inc.
3232 Carp Road, Carp, Ontario, K0A 1L0
Tel.: 343-317-6664

This notice is to provide you with an update on the Canterbury Avenue, Arch Street, and Plesser Street integrated road, sanitary sewer and watermain renewal project.

What: Construction in your neighbourhood will soon be commencing. The sanitary sewer in the project area will be realigned and lowered to help alleviate sanitary flooding and basement backups. The watermain will be replaced as well, due to its proximity to the sanitary sewer. Municipal services to houses will also be replaced from the mainline up to the private property line. In addition, the roadway will be reconstructed with new sidewalks, cycle tracks, and enhanced traffic calming features.

Why: Within the Elmvale area, there have been clustered areas of sanitary flooding and basement backups. This project is to help address sanitary backups around the project limits and to rehabilitate infrastructure that is nearing the end of its lifespan.

When: Pre-construction works throughout the project limits are expected to start in October. These activities include utility locate markings, sewer cleaning and camera inspections, pre-construction inspections of homes and building structures, exploratory hydro-excavation to confirm underground information and collect soil samples and tree removals.

Following pre-construction works, the underground sewer installation will commence around the Canterbury Recreation Complex, at the east parking lot access. The closure of the Halifax/Canterbury intersection for underground work is not expected until spring 2025. The project will be staged over multiple years with completion of landscaping and final asphalt planned for summer 2027.

The City of Ottawa Noise By-law (2017-255) allows construction activity to occur weekdays between 7 am and 10 pm. On Saturdays, work is permitted between 7 am and 10 pm while Sunday and statutory holiday work is allowed between 9 am and 10 pm. The hours of work for this project will typically be Monday to Friday from 7 am to 6 pm.

Where: The project limits are:

• Canterbury Avenue from Halifax Drive to Harding Road
• Arch Street from Canterbury Avenue to Pleasant Park Road
• Plesser Street from Canterbury Avenue to Goren Avenue
• Canterbury Recreation Complex along the east and north access to the parking lot

Who: The City of Ottawa has retained the contractor, GIP Paving Inc, to complete the work. Contract Administration will be under the responsibility of Stantec.

If you own a subsurface lawn irrigation system, please notify the City’s Project Manager. We encourage residents to contact the project manager to identify and confirm that private irrigations systems have been disconnected or relocated. Damage may occur, should you choose not to relocate prior to our arrival. 

On-street parking and local access

As the various road reconstruction activities are in progress, on-street parking will be restricted. Local access will be maintained to residents, business owners and emergency vehicles. Periodically, vehicular access to your property may be unavailable; the contractor is required to provide 24-hour notification of temporary loss of vehicular access/egress to your property. A temporary On-Street Parking Permit will be made available to allow on-street parking within two blocks of your residence when these disruptions occur. Residents with electric vehicles will need to find alternative charging arrangements when access is restricted. The use of extension cords within the public right of way is not permitted.

Should you have additional concerns about reduced access, such as business deliveries or accessibility requirements, please contact the project manager.

Impact on the right of way and adjacent private properties

Construction activities will occur within the City’s right of way but may result in some disruption to adjacent properties; driveways, walkways, lawns and/or gardens may be disturbed. In preparation for construction, the City recommends you remove any assets (i.e. temporary signage, parked vehicles, lawn furniture, special plantings, etc.) from the right of way. The City will reinstate disturbed areas at the end of construction.

You may feel vibrations at your home, due to the use of the heavy equipment needed to complete the work. The vibrations are not expected to be of a level that would impact private properties. As a precaution however, the contractor will hire a specialist to conduct pre-construction surveys to assure property owners that any damage to private property will be recorded and addressed.

Private water services

One element of the reconstruction project is the replacement of the watermain under the road. This work will include replacement of the small water pipe that supplies water to your property, known as the water service. The water service extends from the watermain to your building. Part of the water service is located within the City’s property and part of the water service is located on your private property. This reconstruction project will replace only the City-owned portion of the water service between the watermain and your front property line. This will be done at no cost to you. The private section of the water service (on your property) between the front property line and your building is known as the private water service. The private water service will not be replaced as part of the City project.

If your house/building was built prior to 1958, there is a possibility that your private water service may have been constructed using lead pipe (modern pipes are copper or HDPE). There is information available on the City’s website at ottawa.ca/leadpipes regarding lead in drinking water and how to determine if you have lead plumbing pipes.

If you decide to replace your private water service because of existing lead pipe or simply as preventive maintenance due to the pipe’s age, you as the property owner are responsible for the replacement as you own the pipe located on your property. You may choose to hire your own contractor to replace the water pipes on your private property. The only constraint is that you may not carry out your work while the City is working on the street. Concurrent work on your adjacent property may create a safety hazard for the City’s contractor and/or for your contractor. Once the City’s work is complete, you may replace your private water service at any time thereafter.

Temporary water services

During the watermain reconstruction, water will be supplied to buildings by temporary water lines. While your property will be on this temporary service, your water usage will be estimated as the temporary service is not metered. Your water bill will be based on the past average water usage for your address. If you have any questions, please contact Revenue at 613-580-2444 or WS-Billing@ottawa.ca.

Municipal fire suppression will continue during the construction period. Please note that private fire suppression systems will likely be impacted due to the temporary lines. If you have a private fire suppression system, you should make arrangements with a qualified fire protection services company to assess the extent of the impact.

The building owner is obligated under the Ontario Fire Code (O. Reg 213/07) sections 6.4.1.4. (1)(a) and 6.5.2.1. to notify the fire department and Chief Fire Official of these impairments. To contact Ottawa Fire Services, please email fireprevention@ottawa.ca or call 613-580-2424, ext. 15371.

We apologize in advance for any disruptions in water service during construction. Any problems with the temporary water services can be directed to the City’s on-site representative or call the City of Ottawa at 3-1-1 in the evenings or weekends.

Construction disruptions

The contractor will take every precaution to minimize interruptions to the normal life of your family and/or operation of your business, but as you can appreciate, there may be some inconvenience during the course of the operation of the work. We would like to thank you in advance for your patience and co-operation.

The City of Ottawa held a public open house at the Jim Durrell Recreation Centre on Tuesday March 26 to discuss the proposed infrastructure improvement project in your neighbourhood. Design drawings were on display for your review and staff were present to answer any questions and receive comments.

Presentation [ 652.32 KB ]
Boards [ 8.98 MB ]

Your input is an important part of the consultation process. Your feedback can be submitted by email or by phone to the contact below by April 9, 2024.

The following provides additional information about the public information session:

What: The sanitary sewer in the project area will be realigned and lowered to help alleviate sanitary flooding and basement backups. Due to the proximity to the sewer, the watermain will also be replaced. The full road will be reconstructed with new sidewalks, cycle lanes, and enhanced traffic calming features.

Why: Within the Elmvale area, there have been clustered areas of sanitary flooding and basement backups. This project is to help address a portion of these areas around the project limits and to rehabilitate infrastructure that is nearing the end of its lifespan.

When: Construction is planned to start in summer 2024 and be completed in stages by fall 2026.

Where:

• Canterbury Avenue – Halifax Drive to Harding Road
• Arch Street – Canterbury Avenue to Pleasant Park Road
• Plesser Street – Canterbury Avenue to Goren Avenue

Who: The engineering firm, Stantec, has been retained by the City of Ottawa to develop a design for this project.

For further information about this project and/or to submit comments, please contact the City’s Project Manager:

City Project Manager                                                
Houssam Alchawa, P.Eng.
Senior Engineer, Infrastructure Projects
100 Constellation Drive, Ottawa, ON K2G 6J8
Tel.: 613-580-2424, ext. 25692

The City of Ottawa will undertake subsurface investigations in your neighborhood. This work is being done to determine the depths of existing utilities as part of the detailed design phase of the Integrated Renewal of Canterbury Avenue, Arch Street, and Plesser Street.

What: The investigation work will involve minor excavation of ground surface to confirm the existing vertical and horizontal alignment underground utilities to determine if relocations are required ahead of construction. The investigations will be done by workers and equipment, as needed. Some short duration traffic control will be required to complete the work.

Why: This work supports the detailed design of the Canterbury Avenue, Arch Street, and Plesser Street Integrated Renewal project. An online public information session is planned for fall 2023 to present the design drawings to the public. 

When: The field investigation work will commence in late July and is anticipated to be completed before the end of August 2023. The work will be conducted between the hours of 8 am and 5 pm, Monday to Friday.

Where: At localized spots along the following roads:

• Canterbury Avenue, between Harding Road and Halifax Drive
• Arch Street between Canterbury Avenue and Bangor Street
• Plesser Street between Canterbury Avenue and Goren Avenue. 

Who: Stantec Consulting Ltd. and their sub-consultants, T2 Utility Engineers Inc., will coordinate the work for the City of Ottawa.

On-street parking

The Contractor is obligated to provide 24hr notification of temporary loss of access/egress. In the event that access to your driveway is restricted due to construction activities, a Temporary On-Street Parking Permit (orange form) will be distributed to permit on-street parking within two blocks of your residence.

Construction disruptions

Every precaution will be taken to minimize interruptions to residents. As you can appreciate, there may be some inconvenience during the work. We would like to thank you in advance for your patience and co-operation.

Beginning in the second half of August and into September, the City of Ottawa will undertake a geotechnical investigation in your neighbourhood. This investigation is required as part of the design to replace watermains, sewers and roads on sections of Canterbury Avenue, Arch Street and Plesser Street.

What: The geotechnical investigation will involve the drilling of boreholes and obtaining soil samples for testing as well as Hydro excavation to locate adjacent utilities.

Why: This geotechnical investigation supports the design of the Canterbury, Arch, Plesser integrated rehabilitation project.

When: This geotechnical investigation work will begin in the second half of August and extend into September 2021. The work will be completed during weekdays and should take approximately 10 to 15 days.

Where: The geotechnical investigation will happen at the following locations:

• Canterbury Avenue between Harding Road and Halifax Drive
• Arch Street between Bangor Street and Canterbury Avenue
• Plesser Street Between Goren Avenue and Canterbury Avenue
• Around the Brian Kilrea Arena

Who: Stantec has been retained by the City of Ottawa to undertake a geotechnical investigation for this project.

On-Street Parking

As the various road reconstruction activities are in progress on your street, on-street parking will be restricted. In the event that access to your driveway is restricted due to construction activities, a Temporary On-Street Parking Permit (orange form) will be distributed to permit on-street parking within two blocks of your residence.

Construction Disruptions

Stantec will take every precaution to minimize interruptions to the everyday life of your family and/or operation of your business, but, as you can appreciate, there may be some inconvenience during the course of the work, such as parking restrictions, noise, and odour. We would like to thank you for your patience and co-operation. For construction activity hours of work, the City of Ottawa follows provincial requirements and the City’s Noise By-law (2017-255).

The City of Ottawa continues to take precautionary steps to protect members of the public. As an alternative to hosting in-person public information sessions, information is being posted to Ottawa.ca. The City remains committed to keeping the public informed of projects occurring in your neighbourhood.

The City of Ottawa invites you to review and provide comments on the Integrated Road, Sewer and Watermain for Canterbury Avenue, Arch Street and Plesser Street between February 12 and 26, 2021.

Project Display Boards [ 3.78 MB ]
Preliminary plan 1, geometry and general layout, Canterbury Avenue [ 996 KB ]
Preliminary plan 2, geometry and general layout, Arch Street [ 874 KB ]
Preliminary plan 3, geometry and general layout, Plesser Street [ 552 KB ]
Preliminary plan 4, geometry and general layout, North Complex Access [ 509 KB ]
Preliminary plan 5, geometry and general layout, East Complex Access [ 445 KB ]
Aerial photo [ 2.37 MB ]

What: The sewers in the project area will be realigned and lowered to help alleviate flooding and basement backups. Due to the proximity to the sewer, the watermain will be replaced and the full road will be reconstructed with new sidewalks, cycle lanes and enhanced traffic calming features.

Why: Within the Elmvale area, there have been clustered areas of flooding and basement backups, this project is to help address a portion of these areas around the project limits.

Where:

• Canterbury Avenue - Kilborn Avenue to Halifax Drive
• Arch Street - Pleasant Park Road to Canterbury Avenue
• Plesser Street - Goren Avenue to Canterbury Avenue
• Canterbury Recreational Complex

When: The current project schedule is as follows:

• Design is expected to be completed in fall 2022
• Construction is expected to start in spring 2023

Notifications will be sent to residents prior to the start of construction.

Who: The City of Ottawa has retained the design consulting firm, Stantec Consulting Ltd., to develop a design for the Integrated Road, Sewer and Watermain for Canterbury Avenue, Arch Street and Plesser Street.

For further information about this project and/or to submit comments on the project, please contact the City project manager.