THUNDER BAY -- Work on Cumberland Street will have to wait until next year but city council wants to see if other roads can benefit this season.
City council voted to defer the work after it was learned only a couple of blocks could be completed between Stephens Street and MacDougall Street could be completed before winter set in this year.
As the tender went out in May, bids came back around $1 million over the original cost of the project. The work will be split into two projects between next year and 2017 to get the road redone all the way to the Current River bridge, still on schedule from the original timeline.
Administration also said work could be done instead on renovating the Chamberlain Street pumping station over the winter months. That $685,000 will come from water rate funds set aside for the Cumberland project.
“Administration just feels that this is a better way to spend that money right now,” city engineering head Kayla Dixon told city council Monday.
That leaves nearly $1 million unallocated for capital projects this year. Council agreed to an amendment for Coun. Andrew Foulds to have administration come back with a prioritized list next week of roads projects that could be completed with the money this year.
