The Village continues to work through legal matters relating to tendering and construction of the LSSDS.
You will recall that the Village contracted with AECOM (2015 to 2018) as our engineer to complete the Environmental Assessment, the design and to supervise the building of the new wastewater system. Part of AECOM’s responsibilities to the Village was to calculate the amount of sand required for the project.At the outset, the AECOM engineer calculated that 77,000 tonnes of sand was required, however this amount of sand ended up being incorrect and the Village was required to purchase a significant amount more to finish the project.
The RFP bidding process employed an “all in”, one price for the complete project.It required, in part, that the contractor receive, move and place the sand that would be purchased and supplied by the Village to build up the LSSDS.Selectra was one of 4 contractors who submitted bids and was eventually awarded the contract to build the LSSDS.Selectra and its subcontractor maintain that they should be entitled to rely on AECOM’s weight calculation of 77,000 tonnes and charge more than their fixed, all in price.
As was previously reported, the final amount of sand needed for the project was 134,900 tonnes.Despite two years of working through theoutstanding legal issues, we find that we are still in complicated corporate lawsuits.Selectra has a lawsuit against the Village and AECOM, the Village has a lawsuit against AECOM, while other players involved are suing each other.
We have hoped for constructive resolution discussions to bring the lawsuits to an end, however at this point we are preparing to go to trial in June.Our lawyers and Staff have been spending many hours preparing our case and feel confident that the Village is the victim in this matter and will be successful.
I will keep you advisedif there is a settlement prior to June or how things progress at trial, however our legal council has advised us not to make additional comments at this time.
MAYOR AND COUNCIL ARE LOOKING FOR YOUR INPUT TO DEVELOP WESTPORT’S STRATEGIC PLAN
Over the next three months, the Village of Westport is undertaking a process to develop a Corporate Strategic Plan, including a focus on economic development. With support from, McSweeney & Associates, a community strategic planning consulting firm, the goal is to begin positioning the Village of Westport to be a community that is future ready.
At this time, we are seeking your input to help us further understand the Village of Westport. Your views and opinions are important.
If you have any questions about the Corporate Strategic Plan process or this survey, please contact Paul Snider, CAO at the Village of Westport or Nancy Johnston from McSweeney & Associates.
Thank you for your participation and please keep in mind that all responses are strictly confidential
On Friday, February 21, 2020 the Human Trafficking Coalition of Leeds & Grenville will be holding information sessions for the public on the topic of human trafficking at the following times and location
Kemptville Public library (1 Water Street Kemptville from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm)
Prescott Public Library (360 Dibble Street W, Prescott, from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm)
Brockville Public Library (23 Buell Street, Brockville, from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm)
Rideau Lakes Public Library (26 Halladay Street Elgin, from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm)
Members of the coalition will be available to answer questions and hand out information.
The Human Trafficking Coalition is comprised of a small group of local professionals who have come together to address the issue of human trafficking in Leeds & Grenville Counties. The primary goal of the coalition is public education and awareness. Members from the following organizations are represented in this group; Assault, Response & Care Centre, The Upper Canada District School Board, The Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario, Brockville Police Service, Ontario Provincial Police (East Region), The Mayor of Westport, Victim Services of Leeds & Grenville.
Paul Snider hosted a luncheon for Staff and Council just before Christmas. We enjoyed some time with each other while having a rare lunch of Chinese Food. It was great to share this moment with an amazing group of men and women.
Winter is back this morning, but we missed the freezing rain. Public Works is busy clearing the streets and sidewalks and the Counties have done several sweeps of their roads with plows and sand/salt.
Emergency Survival Kit
This is the second “freezing rain” event in the past two weeks. Do you have a plan and emergency survival kit to take care of yourself and family for at least 72 hours immediately following an emergency?
The heavy rain these past few days has resulted in wet basements and, consequently, sump pumps are working hard. Please remember that it is illegal to connect your sump pump to the waste water system.
Council continues to have concerns about the number of properties discharging clean sump pump water to the waste water lagoons. Every person who disconnects a sump pump from the sewer pipes becomes part of the Village solution, instead of the problem. As I walk in the Village, I note that several properties have disconnected from the sewer system over the past couple of years. On behalf of Council and Staff, thank you for working with us to reduce the exponential amount of clean water being sent to the waste water lagoons.
However, there are still property owners that are not in compliance with the by-law. Research indicates that 10 sump pumps connected to the waste water pipes is equal to the normal household discharge of 300 homes. The pipes were all examined in 2018 & 2019 and are in good condition without leaks.
Members of Council visited every residence in late 2019 and conducted a survey regarding downspout and sump pump connections. Council approved the purchase of a flow meter, which has been installed in the sewer pipes. It will measure unusually high flows for a limited number of properties. Over the next few months, Public Works will be following up with property owners in these areas. Property owners with sump pumps still connected to the sewer pipes are encouraged to make the necessary changes.
Please check your sump pump connection to-day and if you have any questions, contact Mr Peter Evans, Supervisor of Public Works @ 613-273-2191 or pevans@villageofwestport.ca.
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