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Project 18-1357

Watermain replacement sanitary sewer replacement, and roadwork

Streets affected: Queen Street West (McLaughlin Road to Mill Street South and James Potter Intersection) and Wellington Street West (Mill Street South to Elizabeth Street South)

Project update

Peel Region will be working in your area to replace the watermain along Queen Street West from McLaughlin Road to Mill Street South. Resurfacing the Queen Street West and James Potter intersection (this intersection is not included on the map) and Queen Street bridge deck replacement over Fletcher’s Creek. As well as replacing the sanitary sewer on Wellington Street West from Mill Street South to Elizabeth Street South, as shown on the attached map.

  • Watermains are underground pipes that bring tap water from our water treatment plants to your area.
  • Sanitary sewers are underground pipes that carry wastewater from your home or business to a wastewater treatment plant. Wastewater is created when water goes down the drain or is flushed down the toilet.

As pipes age and our population grows, we need to replace older watermains and sewers to keep providing you with high quality water and wastewater services.

Construction schedule

Construction is planned to begin Monday, February 19, 2024, and be completed in the middle of 2026. These timelines are estimates, as weather and other unexpected events may impact our timelines.

All work is under warranty for two years from the completion date.

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What to expect during construction

Learn what to expect during watermain construction by watching our short video. The video goes behind the scenes to show what happens before, during and after construction. This website also answers common questions about:

  • Why your water may be temporarily shut off,
  • How traffic, parking, and waste collection may be affected,
  • How driveways, roads and sod (grass) are repaired after construction is finished.

Contractor and working hours

The work will be completed by Pachino Construction Co. Ltd. and supported by Jacobs Consulting, both under contract to Peel Region. This contractor’s normal working hours are from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday to Friday. These hours are consistent with the local municipality’s bylaws. We understand this may cause some inconvenience, but shorter working days would require your area to be under construction for a longer period of time. From time to time, some work activities will be conducted on the weekend or overnight. This is to limit water interruptions and impacts to users during the day.

Traffic and parking

We may need to temporarily close roads or reduce traffic to a single lane during construction. If we must reroute traffic, we will place signs giving directions. On-street parking will be reduced during construction when we are actively working on your street.

Interrupting your water supply

We anticipate that this construction project will require temporarily shutting off your water.

For residents:

  • It is our goal to let you know 48 hours (2 days) in advance if we plan to shut off your water for an extended period (several hours). Occasionally we may have to reduce this notice to 24 hours.
  • If we need to shut off your water for a short duration (less than one hour), we will knock on your door to notify you.
  • If we must shut off your water due to an emergency, we will knock on your door to alert you, and do everything we can to fix the problem as quickly as possible.

For businesses:

  • If a continuous water supply is required for your business and you have not already completed a water needs survey, please contact us to let us know when and how your business uses water.
  • If we must shut off your water due to an emergency, we will knock on your door to alert you, and do everything we can to fix the problem as quickly as possible.

Areas impacted by construction

Installing watermains and sanitary sewers usually requires digging a trench within the municipal right-of-way, which includes the street and the land owned by the municipality between the water service box and the street. (The water service box is a small, round, metal valve located outside, on the property line between your home or business and the road.) Depending on the location of the watermain and sanitary sewer, this trench might cause temporary damage to roads, curbs, sidewalks, boulevards, lawns, and the bottom of driveways within the municipal right-of-way.

To maintain your water supply, Peel Region will also replace:

  • Your water service box,
  • The section of your water service pipe leading from the watermain to your water service box. The water service pipe carries water from the watermain to your home or business.

This requires digging up your water service box located in the lawn or driveway, and disturbing an area at least two square meters.

In addition, depending on its condition, Peel Region may also repair or replace the municipal portion of the wastewater service pipe, the smaller underground pipe running from your home or business to the Regional sanitary sewer system. This may require digging up either the lawn or driveway above this section of pipe and disturbing an area at least two square meters.

We therefore recommend that you delay any driveway paving or major landscaping projects until this construction work is completed.

Any damage caused by Peel Region’s construction will be repaired.

In-ground sprinkler systems

As the front lawn may be affected by this construction work, if you have an in-ground sprinkler system we strongly recommend moving any sprinkler lines that are located in the municipal right-of-way or next to the sidewalk. If you can’t relocate these sprinkler lines, please send us a map created by your irrigation contractor or flag each sprinkler head that is located within one meter of the sidewalk, curb, or driveway. This will allow us to minimize the impact to your sprinkler system.

Tree trimming

If tree branches within the municipal right-of-way interfere with construction, the trees will be pruned beforehand.

If tree branches on private property interfere with construction, they will be pruned back to the nearest suitable trunk or branch. The contractor will contact you before any pruning of private trees occurs. If you do not allow personnel onto your property to trim the tree, the branches will be cut vertically at the property line.

Repairing areas impacted by construction

We will start repairing the road, curb, sidewalk, driveways, and lawns once the new watermains and sanitary sewers are buried, and these new pipes have been connected to all properties on your street.

Repairs may be delayed due to contractor availability or certain seasonal weather conditions.

For example:

  • Paving cannot take place when the ground is saturated with water, or the temperature is below 3°C.
  • Asphalt is not available in large volumes during the winter. Asphalt usually becomes available around mid-May.
  • Most sod farms are located north of Peel. They usually have sod available beginning in late May. We will replace the sod on your property once it is available. We replace sod only until the middle of November, weather permitting, to let the sod grow roots. If we do not repair your lawn by the middle of November, we’ll replace the sod the following spring.

Repairing grassy areas

The contractor will replace any damaged sod (grass) on the boulevard or your front lawn and will take care of the new sod for 30 days. You can help the sod stay healthy by watering it. A longer ‘deep root watering’ works better to establish new sod than watering more frequently for a shorter time. Watering in the early morning allows more water to soak in instead of evaporating.

Repairing driveways

  • Asphalt driveways: If we need to cut a section of your driveway, the driveway will be repaired by paving a stripe over the disturbed area, resulting in minimal seams in the final driveway. Peel Region cannot replace your entire driveway. If you would like to have the rest of your driveway paved, please contact the contractor, Pachino Construction Co. Ltd., at 905-660-9978. The contractor will then share contact information for the company hired to do the paving repairs. Please remember this is your option. If you decide to have your entire driveway repaved, this extra paving work is your responsibility and outside the jurisdiction of Peel Region.
  • Interlock or concrete driveways: If we damaged a portion of your driveway, our contractor will reinstate the damaged portion of the driveway.

Driveway access

It may be necessary to block your driveway for a short time when crews are digging the trench for the watermain and/or sanitary sewer, replacing your water service box and pipe, working on your wastewater service pipe, or completing other construction activities. If so, we will knock on your door to notify you. If a trench prevents access to your driveway, the contractor will have metal road plates available to allow access if required.

Whenever possible, we will work to ensure businesses can be accessed. Please contact us if you have special needs related to access.

Waste collection

If you receive waste collection from Peel Region, your garbage, recycling, and organics will continue to be picked up on your regularly scheduled day. It is the contractor’s responsibility to move your garbage, recycling, and organics bins from the end of your driveway to a location where waste collection vehicles can pick them up. Empty containers will be returned to their corresponding addresses. Please make sure your house number is clearly marked on each bin. This helps us return empty bins to the correct address.

Vibrations

You could feel slight vibrations from the construction work.

Connecting to Peel Region’s drinking water system

If you use well water, this construction project may provide opportunities to connect to municipal water. Learn more at peelregion.ca/drinking-water/distribution.asp#connecting

Closing your private well

If you have an unused or old private well, we strongly recommend you decommission it as outlined in the Ontario Wells Regulation 903. Peel Region has a private well abandonment program to decommission private wells on existing private residential or farming properties at no cost to the resident. Learn more at peelregion.ca/water/protection/private-well-abandonment-program.

If you wish to keep your private well for irrigation purposes, you must have a qualified person to:

  • Physically disconnect the well piping from the service connection supplying water to the building.
  • Install an approved backflow prevention device.
  • Contact your city or town about having the work inspected.
  • Keep your backflow prevention device in good working order.

Optional protection plans for your exterior water pipes, wastewater pipes, and in-home plumbing

Many homeowners are not aware that they are responsible for maintaining the water and wastewater pipes both inside their home and outdoors up to the property line. If one of these pipes breaks, it can cause unexpected and costly repairs. Peel Region has partnered with Service Line Warranties of Canada (SLWC) to offer homeowners optional, affordable protection from unexpected home repairs. Learn more about the protection plans.

Safety during construction

Construction zones require extra caution to keep everyone safe – pedestrians, cyclists, drivers, and construction workers. When driving, walking, or biking through the construction area, please be aware of your surroundings, watch for construction crews and other road users, slow down, account for delays, and consider other routes if possible. Learn more about how to stay safe in construction zones.

Keeping you informed

We will let you know if there are any major changes to the plans.

Information on this project can also be found on the project webpage.

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We value your feedback

After we have finished, we will invite you to provide feedback on the construction project.

You can sign up to receive this survey electronically.

Thank you for your patience as we complete this necessary work. This work will allow us to continue providing you with high quality tap water and wastewater services. If you have any questions, please contact us.

Water Linear Engineering
Engineering Services Division
Public Works, Region of Peel
905-791-7800, ext. 4409

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