Dan Andrews Posted May 8, 2008 Report Share Posted May 8, 2008 The Frenchman's Creek Sanitary Trunk The "Real" Purpose In 2007 during the Municipal election, candidate Doug Martin told us that the Frenchman's Creek Sanitary Trunk (FCST) was going to fix Crescent Park's sewage problems. Once in office he told us our water/sewer rates were going up in order to pay for new infrastructure and that it would take 4 years to collect enough money to move forward. Fearing our rate hikes were going to new infrastructure instead of fixing the problem, some residents including myself appeared as delegates to Council to suggest that adding a new pipe to a strainer wouldn't fix the leaks. The Mayor disagreed and offered to speak to me at a later date. The Mayor was invited as a guest speaker to the Fort Erie Conservation Club to explain to everyone. He gladly accepted and spoke April 1st, coincidentally the day the rate hikes came into effect. The Mayor explained that the only way to "FIX" the problem is to dig everything up, replace it and install storm sewers. That however was not financially feasible and an invite was sent out for anyone to come up with an affordable solution. I found this reasonable but disheartening. The Mayor did explain what the Town is doing to "alleviate" the situation in Crescent Park not "fix" it. The Extraneous Flow program is finding plenty of problems on the property owners side, a surface water drainage plan is in the works as demonstrated at the Public Information Center (PIC) held April 16th and any large leaks that are being found are being repaired. The Mayor also explained the purpose of the Frenchman's Creek Sanitary Trunk. It is for new development. It will allow development in Industrial zoned lands. As a "side benefit" it will take approximately "20%" of the volume off the Crescent Park system. Meanwhile at the April 16th PIC, consultants recommended installing storm sewers as well as improving drainage. They also found that soil composition was drawing ground water to the sewer mains. Ron Tripp can be heard arguing that the system isn't as fractured as everyone claims it is. If anyone supports Mr Tripp's claims, all they need do is take a drive around Crescent Park and see all the lawns that have been dug up to repair their lateral lines. These private laterals are made from the same material as the sewer lines on Town property but for some reason, tree roots only seem to grow through pipes on private property. The FCST will not fix what's broken but may be enough to alleviate the need to pump sewage or stop basement backups for now. However adding any more volume from resulting development will cancel any benefits the new trunk brings us. Hopefully someone will take Mayor Doug Martin's offer and come up with an affordable solution to "fix" the problem before the next election. Dan Andrews Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Andrews Posted May 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2008 Is this Mayor on the same page with the news reporters as he was with the public the at the club? Mayor says Town is addressing drainage issues Posted By Kris Dubé Posted 21 days ago "We realize there is a problem, and that's why we're addressing it," said Mayor Doug Martin more than a few times on Tuesday night at the Fort Erie Conservation Club. He was invited for the club's monthly meeting to speak about the Frenchman's Creek sanitary sewer trunk main, and take questions from residents of Greater Fort Erie who might have a question or concern about the project that will cost $6.6 million if all three phases are approved. The Niagara Region will cover $5-million, and the Town of Fort Erie will have spent $1.6 million when all is said and done. The first phase in which the new sewer line will start on Garrison Road, just north of Thompson Road, will run to the existing Thompson Road pumping station. Phase two will connect with the line at the Thompson Road station and carry sewage to the Anger Avenue pumping station. "Phase two will be funded, as soon as phase one is completed," said Martin in front of a crowd of about 75 people. It was clear that some of the people in attendance arrived at the meeting with pre-meditated questions and opinions about the project before Martin even stood up at the podium to provide these residents with as much information as he possibly could about the Frenchman's Creek sanitary sewer trunk main, which was the reason he was invited to speak at the meeting in the first place. Some residents voiced concerns about alternatives to the project. Martin said the region sees this as being the only solution that is worthwhile, and would not allocate money for any other suggested process for eliminating flooding problems all over town. "They feel that everything they've developed is not cost effective, and therefore will not submit the dollars to do so," said Martin who also explained that the Region does not allocate funds to municipalities if a project isn't expansive in nature. Much of the concern at the meeting, and throughout town, is the drainage problems the residents of Crescent Park have suffered from for several years. Many people stood up and told stories about flooding in their basements and how it has drastically affected their everyday life during wet weather. Martin explained that the drainage systems in Crescent Park do not have the capacity for extraneous flow caused by rain and melting snow. The whole purpose of this new trunk main is to hopefully alleviate that problem, and residents of Crescent Park will be able to use their basements again, without worrying if there is going to be a foot of water on the floor when they get up in the morning. There is a series of testing that the Town of Fort Erie attempted to conduct by going door-to-door in Crescent Park to examine sewer lines on residents' property. He said most people were resistant to allow Town staff into their homes to conduct the tests. Another round of testing will be done as soon as possible. Martin said he wants to assure the people of Crescent Park that he and Town staff are well aware of the problem in Crescent Park, and that's the whole point of this project. By conducting these tests, a much better understanding of where the problem is coming from will arrive. "Crescent Park is basically low, and the water table there is high, the water infiltrates into the line on a regular basis, and when it gets wet, it (affects) the situation," said Martin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Andrews Posted May 8, 2008 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2008 OK I'm a straight shooter. I like to cooperate and I hate it when people slam our elected officials because they never receive credit when they deserve it and anyone can run for the job. This is my turn to gripe though. Either the Mayor was misquoted in that Kris Dube article, Doug is getting Alzheimer's or he's not telling the media the truth. I can't imagine why. Here's what came right from the horses mouth. <embed width="448" height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" src="http://i264.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid264.photobucket.com/albums/ii179/forteriecc/FCST.flv"> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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