THUNDER BAY — Construction companies interested in winning the contract to rehabilitate the 100-year-old Boulevard Lake Dam now have a better sense of the scope of the project.
City officials on Monday invited prospective bidders to a site visit and an explanation of the work that's going to be required.
The city wants work to begin by next spring.
It will take two years to complete the job, which has multiple components including a significant amount of concrete rehabilitation:
- rehabilitating deteriorated protective concrete through patching
- installing a redundant set of post-tensioned steel tendons in buttresses along the east side of the dam
- replacing wooden stop logs with automated gates
- widening the deck of the dam to City of Thunder Bay standard trail width
- improving lighting on the dam
Two cofferdams will be built to facilitate repairs to the upstream side of the dam, requiring a lowering of Boulevard Lake next year.
It's not clear yet how much the project will cost. One estimate earlier this year placed it at $7 million, but much of the cost is covered by a federal government contribution announced in May.
Tenders will close in mid-January.
The city has hired JML Engineering as a consultant.
In an interview Monday during the inspection visit, JML's John Lorenowich said "If the bids come in, pricing looks good, scope of work's understood, we'll be raring to go next year."
Efforts by city administration to strengthen and modernize the dam date back to 2012.
Engineering studies had identified significant concrete deterioration, leading to concerns about the structure’s ability to withstand floodwaters.
Although the original dam was built about a century ago, parts of it have been upgraded over the years.
