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Strathcona Regional District awards contract for dike work in Oyster River

Area between Campbell River and Comox Valley targeted for work includes more than 300 residents
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Heavy rains caused the Oyster River to breach its bank, flooding parts of the popular Oyster River Nature Park. File photo

Work on the dike protecting Oyster River residents took another next step forward, as the Strathcona Regional District has awarded the contract last week.

At the March 28 meeting, the SRD board passed a motion to award the contract for the Glenmore Road dike reparations project.

The SRD had budgeted $441,000 for the project, but the successful bidder came in lower than the amount that had been budgeted.

“I’m very glad to see that this is moving forward for flood protection for the Oyster River area,” said Area D Director Brenda Leigh.

The area has been prone to flood risks, and the current diking system needed emergency repairs during flooding conditions in 2009 and 2014. The system was built in 1992 and extends 570 metres along the south side of Glenmore Road, with elevation ranging from 23 metres to 18 metres.

There are more than 300 residents in the area as well as businesses at Oyster River Plaza along Highway 19A.

The regional district issued a request for proposal (RFP) last December after receiving word the province was providing money for the flood mitigation project. It got two bids in response, and staff evaluated the proposals according to criteria such as cost, relevant project experience, the ability to meet the project schedule and the bidders’ safety records.

RELATED STORY: Province funds flood mitigation work near Oyster River

The winning proposal was submitted by McElhanney Consulting Services in association with Wacor Holdings. At $351,550.50 plus $20,606 for design services and $18,607.83 for GST, it was the only one that fell within the budget parameters for the project and is compliant with all the terms of the RFP.

“The winning bid is saying that they will be able to deliver the project under budget and likely use a bit of excess for ongoing maintenance,” Leigh said. “I think it’s a good fit for the Oyster River area.”

In the submission, the bidders state they have more than a decade of experience working on flooding, diking and drainage issues in the area of Oyster River.

“Our history, experience, and local presence ensures that we are uniquely suited to collaborate with the Strathcona Regional District (SRD) and local residents during the execution of this important work,” they state in the submission.

The proponents note they are aiming for project construction to take into account the June 15 or July 1 fisheries window. This will include work such as test pits to confirm the volume of organics to be removed, dike design drawings and giving notifications to or getting approvals from federal and provincial government ministries.

They note the major challenges that affect the performance of the dike and make maintenance difficult include vegetation growth and an outdated outlet floodbox structure – culvert with flap-gate – that needs to be replaced. Another priority is to upgrade and raise the north end of the dike.

Leigh said the proponents expect to have the work completed by Sept. 30, 2018.

“They got a pretty heavy time crunch coming up to get this done,” she said.

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This SRD map shows the location of the work on the dike. File, SRD