North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority begin Chippewa Creek repairs
The North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority will begin work next week to remediate 45 metres of Chippewa Creek at Oak Street and re-establish the Kinsmen Trail link across the creek with a new pedestrian bridge.
“The benefits to the residents of North Bay are twofold,” said City Coun. Dave Mendicino, chair of the North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority board.
"The channel work will repair streambank erosion and help alleviate upstream flood hazards. The new pedestrian bridge will provide a significant enhancement to the city’s active transportation network."
The board awarded $763,000 to CSL Group Ltd. to get the project underway. Construction was expected to begin last fall, but was rescheduled to this year. It is expected to begin Aug. 3 and be completed by late fall of this year.
Pedestrians will be redirected to Main Street until construction is completed.
“The creek repair gives us an opportunity to enhance the city’s active transportation network with a new pedestrian bridge that will strengthen the pedestrian and cycling link between West Ferris, downtown and, ultimately, the waterfront and across the city,” said Mendicino.
An old Ontario Northland railway bridge, as well as the existing closed pedestrian bridge, will be torn down. A new 28-metre prefabricated steel bridge with a wooden deck will accommodate the widened creek channel and utilities in the area.
The need for the creek repairs was identified in a 2015 erosion control study of Chippewa Creek. The Oak Street section of the creek was tagged as the top priority. Reoccurring flooding and excessive erosion were causing instability in the banks and channels. And the stone abutments along this portion of the creek were becoming unstable.
Following the erosion control study, the best remediation option was identified through a class environmental assessment completed in 2019.
The old concrete abutments will be replaced with new armour stone wall on one side. The other side of the creek will be regraded to create a wider creek channel incorporating principles of natural channel design, including native shrub plantings and a bank full bench to help re-establish riparian habitat areas. Shoreline vegetation will help shore up the streambanks and create natural habitat.
The project will also help alleviate upstream flooding hazards and slightly reduce the flood plain in the area.
The costs of the original Chippewa Creek erosion study, the environmental assessment and the construction work are shared between the North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority, the City of North Bay and the Province of Ontario.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Video shows suspect setting Toronto-area barbershop on fire
Video of a suspect lighting a Richmond Hill barbershop on fire earlier this week has been released by police.
'I have the will to live': N.B. woman needs double lung transplant
A New Brunswick woman suffering from sarcoidosis, a disease that limits your lung capacity, is in need of a double lung transplant.
The kids from 'Mrs. Doubtfire are all SUPER grown up now, and we're not OK
The adorable trio of child actors from the 1993 classic comedy 'Mrs. Doubtfire,' which starred the late and great Robin Williams, are all grown up and looking back on their seminal time together.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Britney Spears 'home and safe' after paramedics responded to an incident at the Chateau Marmont, source tells CNN
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
Suter scores late goal, clinches series for Canucks
Pius Suter scored with 1:39 left and the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Friday night in Game 6.
Premier Legault reiterates that McGill pro-Palestinian camp must be dismantled
Quebec Premier François Legault reiterated that the pro-Palestinian encampment at McGill University must be dismantled while police remain 'on the lookout for new developments.'