The protective net around the Eastglen Water Tower has split, leaving the Town of Westlock with a potential extra expense as it finalizes plans to replace the 48-year-old structure.
Town chief administrative officer Dean Krause told council at its Oct. 10 meeting that the net, which began to split Sept. 18, had a functional lifespan of roughly two years. The town covered the 30-metre-tall tower with the net in 2015 after debris began to fall off it.
Noting that the netting cost nearly $13,000, Krause said that administration has asked MPE Engineering, which is designing the replacement reservoir for the tower, to look into potential solutions.
“They can’t just stitch it up because it’s actually coming apart. You can literally grab it and rip it,” said Krause.
Once MPE has come up with a solution, the decision will fall onto the new council to spend the unbudgeted money.
Krause added that the netting was split on a side not facing homes, so there should be no danger from falling debris.
In the meantime, he noted that the replacement reservoir plans are 95 per cent done and the town is getting close to putting the work out for tender.
Once work commences, a new reservoir will be dug and the pump station will be upgraded before the tower is finally taken down.
Construction costs of the new 3,000 square metre reservoir is estimated at $4.2 million. With the demolition of the tower added in, the total cost of the project is $5.7 million.
“Our anticipation when we put it up was that we would be into the project by this time,” said Krause. “But it got pushed down because we are still waiting from the province for an extension to the timeframe for a grant. We’re requesting to expedite that request.”
Krause explained that the Canada Clean Water and Wastewater Fund grant funding the project is only valid until March 2018. He said that the province had indicated that it would be possible to get the grant extended until fall 2019, but wanted the extension in writing.
As the grant is provided by the federal government and distributed by the province, clearing the red tape is taking time. Krause said the town was hoping to begin work in the spring, in which case they would not need to replace the netting.
In the interim, he said that the split is not a safety issue.
“It’s still protecting the side that we want protected, near the house,” he said. “We’re not concerned about any imminent danger. Our public works crew is monitoring it.”
