[Dmajackson]

Since I imagine we will be hearing more about this in the coming months a thread will probably be warranted.

Stimulus spending comes to Bayers Lake
BAYERS LAKE
KEN PARTRIDGE
The Burnside News


The possibility of a third entrance/exit for Bayers Lake is one step closer to reality with the announcement that federal stimulus dollars are available to help cover the cost of the Washmill Mill Lake Court Extension.

The exact dollar amount of the federal funds is not yet known, but the contribution would cover the portion of the extension passing underneath the Bicentennial Highway, leaving the rest of the connection – Regency Park Drive – over to Main Avenue for the city to cover.

For its part, Clayton Developments is anxious to get started on the project. At a recent public meeting, the private developer unveiled its preliminary plans for the area, which includes development along both sides of the new roadway. This increases the need for sidewalks along both sides of the new street instead of along just one side, as part of the early design concept for the Extension had proposed.

An exact timeline for construction of the Washmill Lake Court Extension is still unclear, but the Bayers Lake Business Association (BLBA) is hopeful the project can be completed before the 2011 Canada Winter Games begin. Since the federal funding stipulates all project must be substantially complete by March 30, 2011 in order to qualify, this goal looks to be within reach.

[Dmajackson]

Looks like this is proceeding quicker than I expected;

Washmill Lake Underpass Tender (http://www.halifax.ca/council/agendasc/documents/100302ca1111.pdf)

[kph06]

Surprising Dexter Construction didn't get the contract. Brycon is now probably the number two construction company in the area since Dexter recently bought ACL.

[kph06]

Crews have begun cutting the trees down in this area. What they have down so far shows a rough idea of the future road alignment.

[worldlyhaligonian]

Crews have begun cutting the trees down in this area. What they have down so far shows a rough idea of the future road alignment.

Nice... this will definitely spur development throughout CP and BL.

[DigitalNinja]

Awesome :D So once this and the new bedford one is done, how many passes will that be to the bedford commons area?

[Dmajackson]

They've begun the blasting according to a news release today.

[kph06]

Updated plans for this development are now on the HRM Website. (http://www.halifax.ca/planning/Case01304Details.html)

[someone123]

Why are they still building detached housing pods in the HRM? What a wasteful use of space.

[Keith P.]

Some of those proposals have buildings awfully close to the Bi-Hi. One hopes someone has enough foresight to allow a big enough corridor for future widening.

[someone123]

Are there plans for widening the highway? I doubt four lanes are going to cut it once Clayton Park, Kearney Lake, and Bedford South are built out.

[Dmajackson]

Are there plans for widening the highway? I doubt four lanes are going to cut it once Clayton Park, Kearney Lake, and Bedford South are built out.

Add in Bedford West and Bedford Commons (if they ever build the residential part).

I'd honestly say the Bi-Hi should be 6 continuous lanes from Joe Howe to Exit 4C. Four lanes from Sackville to Miller Lake (Hwy 118) would suffice and six continuous lanes from there to the airport is needed.

[Dmajackson]

Looks like a section of the new Washmill Lake Drive will become limited access;

http://www.halifax.ca/council/agendasc/documents/100810ca1115.pdf

[hfx_chris]

You mean controlled access.

[Dmajackson]

If anybody wants to see a cool construction site I suggest heading out to this underpass. The "rusted" shale (granite perhaps?) is awesome to look at.

[-Harlington-]

yeah, ive been by this a few times and its pretty cool to watch, i like the canyon look on the clayton park side.

[Dmajackson]

From the weekend;

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4084/5071835235_201761b457_z.jpg

[worldlyhaligonian]

Just awesome! Looks like they are really doing a full job here. Thanks for the updates DJ!!

[fenwick16]

For the sake of the people who are not familiar with this underpass, I believe that it is under this stretch of the 102 and will connect 102-western side Washmill Lake Court with the 102-eastern side Regency Park Drive. http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&cp=44.64832437416958~-63.667329102921315&lvl=16&sty=h&where1=Washmill%20Lake%20Ct%2C%20Halifax%2C%20NS%2C%20B3S. There is a construction map in this document http://www.halifax.ca/council/agendasc/documents/100302ca1111.pdf

With the new underpass to the Bayers Lake Shopping area and the Lacewood Bus Terminal that is being planned, this looks like a good area for a stadium. Since a stadium could be built overlooking the 102 highway, it could generate income through electronic signs seen from the 102. What do you think of this area ATL Stadium? In DMA Jackson's photo above, it would be where the trees are across from the 102 - http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&cp=rf7h7x9ptwpd&scene=43646030&lvl=1&sty=b&where1=Washmill%20Lake%20Ct%2C%20Halifax%2C%20NS%2C%20B3S

[Dmajackson]

SSP Dmajackson 01's photo page (http://www.flickr.com/photos/53383761@N07/5139895665/)

Washmill Lake Underpass - October 30th, 2010

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4126/5139895665_2f4d2c4956_z.jpg

[fenwick16]

Source: Dmajackson - Washmill Lake Underpass - October 30th, 2010
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4126/5139895665_2f4d2c4956_z.jpg


Thanks for the picture Dmajackson. I can imagine a 25,000 seat stadium on the other side of that underpass near the Halifax Mainland Commons. Where the trees and transmission tower are.

[Dmajackson]

Burnside News Article (http://www.burnsidenews.com/News/2010-11-05/article-1926804/Washmill-delay-raises-concerns/1)

Washmill delay raises concerns
Published on November 5th, 2010
Ken Partridge Bayers Lake

Staff at HRM’s Design and Construction division have confirmed that budget problems are pushing back the expected completion date for roadwork on the Washmill Lake Court extension under the Bicentennial Highway.

...

[Dmajackson]

Update from earlier today;

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4132/5195602139_7406aff10e_z.jpg

[Dmajackson]

Road Construction - Washmill Lake

(Friday, December 17, 2010) - Commencing Monday, December 20, 2010, beginning at 9:00 am and continuing until Thursday, December 23 @ 6:00 pm work will be ongoing on Highway 102, at Washmill Lake Overpass (between Exit 1A (Exit to Highway 103) and Exit 2A (Exit to Lacewood)) for the opening of Washmill Lake Overpass and closure of the existing detours. This work shall be dependent on weather and other conditions that may apply.

...

Source: Halifax RM Press Release (http://www.halifax.ca/mediaroom/pressrelease/pr2010/101217WashmillLakeRoadConstruction.html)

[Dmajackson]

From today;

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5007/5275727624_6b653103ec_z.jpg

[Jstaleness]

This is a very attractive Over Pass,:haha: Falls second place to the Larry Uteck of course.

[Keith P.]

Is it an overpass or an underpass? I vote for the latter. It is better than the Uteck one in that no roundabouts have been imposed on the infrastructure as yet. However, it is inferior in that it looks terribly narrow.

[Jstaleness]

It looks like there is no room for expansion. I'm not sure what the expectations of traffic levels for that street are though. It looks like it will only be 2 lanes right?

[-Harlington-]

actually, i was walking there the other day and thought it looked like about three or four lanes, although it was dark

[macgregor]

It looks like there is no room for expansion. I'm not sure what the expectations of traffic levels for that street are though. It looks like it will only be 2 lanes right?

The Burnside news said it would be similar to the other bayers lake roads. 2+2.

[Wishblade]

Council pushes ahead with controversial Bayers Lake underpass project

By MICHAEL LIGHTSTONE City Hall Reporter
Tue, Jan 25 - 8:12 PM

Halifax regional council Tuesday moved a contentious road infrastructure plan forward despite the "calamity of errors" that led to the three-phase project being $5 million to $7 million over budget.

Regional council in a 17-4 recorded vote decided to support completion of the Washmill Lake Court underpass in the Bayers Lake business park.

A majority of councillors felt it would be "irresponsible" to pull the plug. The project is to provide a third entrance to and exit from the commercial district.

The park will be expanding during the next decade and the underpass is seen as a crucial element of that growth.

Halifax Regional Municipality is getting provincial and federal funds for the infrastructure job; the city's net contribution is about $3.8 million.

With the cost overrun, the project's bottom line is now estimated at $17 million, municipal staff told council.

Initial rock excavation estimates were off the mark and there were problems with pyritic slate at the construction site, which senior staff said helped drive up the cost.

Even those councillors who approved of the construction work proceeding said they had to hold their nose to vote yes.

"This has been a calamity of errors — we all know it," said veteran Coun. Steve Streatch (Eastern Shore-Musquodoboit Valley). "If you want a scapegoat, then let's have a public lynching or fire somebody, but let's not make the project the scapegoat."

Council earlier Tuesday met in secret to discuss the Washmill Lake Court underpass. Staff and councillors told The Chronicle Herald no one was fired over the costly plan and the municipality, for now, has decided not to sue anyone from the private sector linked to the project.

[sdm]

Will Wayne Anstey, city's top staffer, be fired for this?
Washmill underpass budget bungling throws City Hall into chaos.
Posted by Tim Bousquet on Mon, Jan 24, 2011 at 6:03 PM

A major scandal is rocking Halifax City Hall. Some councillors want to fire Wayne Anstey, the city’s head bureaucrat. Councillors Gloria McCluskey and Mary Wile had a public screaming match Saturday at what was supposed to a staid and celebratory grand opening of the Canada Games Centre. Most important, council is left dealing with a staggering huge budget hole---$8 million added to an already huge $13 million---caused by a single bridge project that pits suburban development against downtown’s needs.
At issue is a mundanely titled project called the Washmill Lake Court underpass, Washmill Lake Court being what’s now a two-lane cul-de-sac between the Empire Imax Theatre and Old Navy in the Bayers Lake Industrial Park. The idea was to widen the roadway to four lanes and extend it under Highway 102; over on the other side it would hook up with a new section of Regency Park Drive and extend onto Main Avenue. Basically, the new underpass would connect the suburban apartment blocks of Clayton Park to the suburban big box paradise of BLIP.

The Washmill underpass is a economic stimulus project from 2009. (I’ll spare you the long and sordid political history of how this particular project rose to the top of the city’s economic stimulus list, but if you’re interested, I explained this sad tale in November, 2009, here.) What followed was a textbook example of How to fuck up a construction project and bankrupt the city.

HOW TO FUCK UP A CONSTRUCTION PROJECT AND BANKRUPT THE CITY
Step One: Perform a bogus cost estimate
As recently as March 31, a list of capital projects in HRM put the cost of the Washmill underpass at $5.8 million, a figure apparently pulled from someone’s ass. When it looked like the project would actually get some federal funding, though, a new number was pulled from someone else’s ass: $10 million. That’s the figure that was given to the feds for consideration for economic stimulus funding.

Under the rules of stimulus funding, a third of the money was to come from the federal government, a third from the provincial government and a third from the city but, crucially, all cost overruns are to be absorbed by the city alone.


click to enlarge

The Washmill underpass now leads directly into this stone wall.
The city guards itself against cost overruns by hiring a consultant to perform what’s called a “Class A estimate” of project costs. Instead of pulling a number out of someone's ass, the Class A estimate is supposed to take the task so seriously that it ensures final project costs will come within 10 percent of the estimate. In this instance, engineering firm SNC Lavalin Inc was awarded a $195,939 contract to design the underpass project, estimate the costs and oversee construction. Tellingly, even the Lavalin contract was $35,000 over anticipated costs.
None of the city paperwork I’ve been able to find details exactly what costs Lavalin projected for the entire project, and no city officials with that knowledge are returning my calls today, so we’ll just have to wait to find out. But we do know that the project was broken into three parts: Phase 1 would consist of the excavating required to build both the new extended Washmill Court, now to be called an “Avenue,” and some temporary bypass roads up on the Bihi---the zig-zag drivers have had to maneuver the last few months. Phase 2 was to build the bridges. Phase 3 would build the new Washmill Avenue.

Lavalin estimated that Phase 1 would cost $2,005,000, and city council OKed a tender for that amount to Brycon Construction Limited on March 2, 2010, adding the extra 10 percent into the budget as a precaution. But even the extra dough didn’t cover the actual costs of Phase 1, which was completed just shy of a million bucks over-budget plus 10 percent: $994,137 to be exact.

Step Two: Completely ignore potential environmental issues
Where’d the Phase 1 cost overrun come from? Explains paperwork given to council this week:

The increased cost for Phase 1 arises from both cost over-runs, as well as including work in Phase 1 that was originally intended to be carried out in Phase 2. The work originally intended to be completed in Phase 2 included removal and disposal of pyritic rock that was to be used to construct the subgrade of the detour road. After construction commenced, an application for the temporary use of this pyritic slate was submitted to N.S. Department of Environment but the application was denied. As a result, the slate was removed in Phase 1 and new rock had to be imported to construct the detour road. This resulted in an extra cost of $550,000. Pyritic rock is nothing new in Halifax---most every large construction project has to deal with it. It is a highly acidic slate, that once dug up poses run-off problems for adjoining properties and, as I understand it, for underlying aquifers. The rock is disposed of simply enough---you cart it off to an approved salt water infill project, in our case either the King’s Landing condo project in Dartmouth or Waterfront Development’s Mill Cove infill project.
The city, however, thought they could use the rock temporarily as a base for the Bihi detours, an idea nixed in a millisecond by the Department of Environment, whose spokespeople are presently digging up the file for me.

But on the federal stimulus funding application for Washmill, there’s a question: “f) Have all necessary environmental approvals been secured?” City staffer Phil Townsend, who filled out the application, dutifully Xed off the “n/a” column---”not applicable”---because who needs a silly environmental approval?

That explains $550,000 of the cost overrun for Phase 1; what about the other $444,137, which is by itself more than twice the $200,000 set aside for the 10 percent insurance? None of the paperwork explains it.

Step Three: Hide humungous cost overruns behind the Queen’s substantial, er, party
Things really got interesting for Phase 2, which was getting up and running in June, 2010. None of the public paperwork says anything about Lavalin’s projected cost for Phase 2, but on June 28, 2010, then-CAO Dan English approved a $8,129,590 tender award to Dexter Construction to do the work.


click to enlarge

The un-completed underpass is the target of graffiti artists.
According to normal city rules, any contract worth more than $500,000 has to be approved by city council, so what’s English doing approving an $8.1 million contract? Well, the city’s procurement policy does provide an exemption for the half-million dollar limit:
During the summer months (July and August) and for occasions when a regular Regional Council meeting has been cancelled or the regular schedule creates more than eight (8) business days between Council meetings, the CAO or his designate, may approve the award of contracts... Thing is, there was a city council meeting scheduled for the very next day, June 29. But, hey, we were all excited about the Queen’s visit, which was filling up the week with hoopla and lunches and whatnot, so to free up councillors' time, the June 29 meeting was cancelled. I have no idea who made that decision, but such decisions are typically made by a nebulous committee that includes mayor Peter Kelly and the CAO. I remember the announcement the previous week clearly, because councillor Gloria McCluskey turned to me and said, “I don’t want to see the Queen; I saw her enough the last time she was here.”
“I didn’t go to any of the events,” councillor Bill Karsten tells me. “I don’t think any of the councillors did---except for Steve Streatch; he went to a luncheon, I think.”

It’s not like the council didn’t have much to do. For example, an $8.1 million contract that would push the Washmill project past the $10 million budget---with Phase 3 still to come---is a really big deal. But more than that, all the other stuff on the June 29 meeting was moved to the following week. “We met from 9:30 in the morning until 9:58 at night,” recalls councillor Jackie Barkhouse, who sort of compulsively records such information.

One of things council did at that all-day July 6 council meeting was discuss Dan English's employment future. During a secret council session, English “retired,” collecting more than $300,000 in retirement bennies, councillor Sue Uteck told News 95.7 radio.

Regardless, for whatever reason, English was able to single-handedly, without council approval or even council knowledge, commit the city to spending $8.1 million and breaking council’s approved budget for Washmill.

Step Four: Don’t tell councillors anything until their backs are against the wall
It’s been over six months since the heavy doors at City Hall hit English’s departing backside, but throughout that period it never occurred to any city staffer to tell council that a moon-sized meteor was bearing down upon the city budget.

“The first I’ve heard of it was last week,” says councillor Dawn Sloane, echoing comments made by a half-dozen others.

It’s as if the Washmill project was simply set aside and forgotten about, until after Christmas. The equipment at the site is sitting empty, and graffiti is now scrawled on the walls of the underpass that leads directly to a stone wall.


click to enlarge

Equipment sits idle at the construction site.
But the economic stimulus funding has a deadline. Specifically, if the city doesn’t finish the project by March 31, then it loses the federal and provincial funding; that is, $6,666,667. Thankfully, so many of these stimulus projects have fallen behind schedule that the feds have agreed to roll back the completion date to October 31, but only if the various cities sign an application by next month. That’s apparently the only reason the entire can of worms is coming before council even now---because staff needs a signature.
And what about Phase 3? Well, again, there’s no telling what Lavalin projected the costs to be, as that’s evidently some sort of state secret. But staff says Phase 3 will cost an additional---I suggest you sit down before reading further---an additional $5-to-$7 million, bringing total Washmill project costs, initially Class A estimated at $10 million, to between $16 and $18 million.

So council is confronted with these options:
1. It can cancel the project outright, and thereby lose $6,666,667 in federal and provincial funding and eat the entire $11 million already spent to get an underpass to nowhere.
2. It can find another $5-to-7 million dollars laying around somewhere and get the job completed, and eat the potential $8 million in cost overruns.

Understand that council, having more or less reasonably dealt with a $30 million budget shortfall in the spring, was supposed to find another $13 million in cuts in the fall, a decision that was kicked back to January as council, ironically, fell over itself to find a few hundred million dollars for a convention centre. So, we’re now left with a $21 million budget shortfall, which will likely be compounded by a bigger hit in the April budget sessions.

In other words, we are in something resembling fiscal freefall.

I’ll have much more to say on this issue in coming days.

[fenwick16]

Will Wayne Anstey, city's top staffer, be fired for this?
Washmill underpass budget bungling throws City Hall into chaos.
Posted by Tim Bousquet on Mon, Jan 24, 2011 at 6:03 PM

.
.
.
Understand that council, having more or less reasonably dealt with a $30 million budget shortfall in the spring, was supposed to find another $13 million in cuts in the fall, a decision that was kicked back to January as council, ironically, fell over itself to find a few hundred million dollars for a convention centre. So, we’re now left with a $21 million budget shortfall, which will likely be compounded by a bigger hit in the April budget sessions.

In other words, we are in something resembling fiscal freefall.

I’ll have much more to say on this issue in coming days.

The statement about finding a few hundred million dollars for the convention centre indicates that most of the rest of this story is probably false also. Once again another sensational story by Tim Bousquet :rolleyes:

[someone123]

City council found a few hundred million for the convention centre? Fiscal freefall?

Can Halifax have some real journalists please?

[worldlyhaligonian]

Lol, the people printing this should be the ones getting fired. Overruns aside, this is a valuable piece of infrastructure, esp. the densification inside the borders of CP.

[DigitalNinja]

*Bangs my head against a brick wall over and over and over and over*
Get me out of here... I wonder if there are any videos of the women screaming haha.

[alps]

I'd love to see a fraction of the cost thrown at all these interchanges put into a bit of proper bike infrastructure near downtown. I'm not denying that some people will find use in this, but I really don't see how it's a $17-million urgent priority at this time. :shrug: *ducks*

[DigitalNinja]

I think that more people will use this then bike lanes downtown that most only use for half of the year.
Speaking of that, I hate people on bikes who think they are a car. I had a guy going up a hill on a bike REALLY SLOW IN THE MIDDLE OF THE LANE. I could not pass him and for some reason he had to bike in the middle for 500m so he could turn left at the top.

[Dmajackson]

I'd love to see a fraction of the cost thrown at all these interchanges put into a bit of proper bike infrastructure near downtown. I'm not denying that some people will find use in this, but I really don't see how it's a $17-million urgent priority at this time. :shrug: *ducks*

If its any consolation it was mentioned tonight this will have bike lanes included in the curb-curb width.

I think the road changes downtown are still planned for this year and those include bike lanes on Hollis and Lower Water.

I think that more people will use this then bike lanes downtown that most only use for half of the year.
Speaking of that, I hate people on bikes who think they are a car. I had a guy going up a hill on a bike REALLY SLOW IN THE MIDDLE OF THE LANE. I could not pass him and for some reason he had to bike in the middle for 500m so he could turn left at the top.

You'd be surprised actually. I still see multiple cyclists (including myself) on the roads in Bedford in the middle of winter. :)

As for the latter part of your post that is called "defensive" driving and is acceptable under the law. If a cyclists wants to change lanes unfortunately vehicles never slow down to let them in so any oppurtunity to move over has to be taken by us two-wheelers. Depending on the speed of the cyclist and the road width up to 500m away from the turn might be necessairy for safety reasons. Biking in the centre of the lane is also acceptable if traffic is heavy and not safely passing the cyclist. The new laws coming into effect soon will help motorists be nicer to cyclists.

[someone123]

I'm not denying that some people will find use in this, but I really don't see how it's a $17-million urgent priority at this time.

It's worth pointing out that this is designed to accommodate a large expansion of the poorly-designed Bayers Lake area. Will it even result in better traffic over the long term?

Is it any wonder that the downtown is doing poorly when the city is so heavily subsidizing areas like this? The peninsula is full of empty sites and HRM is paying to open up new land.

[-Harlington-]

Some pics from the other day :


http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/270740_10150311905756103_511831102_9047262_3131880_n.jpg

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/282642_10150311905941103_511831102_9047265_2382251_n.jpg

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/261394_10150311906981103_511831102_9047276_4182328_n.jpg

[Keith P.]

Wow, not much progress on even a roadbed yet for all those millions.

[fenwick16]

Some pics from the other day :

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/261394_10150311906981103_511831102_9047276_4182328_n.jpg

Thank you for the pictorial update. What is the structure above - is this part of the overpass?

In this Google Map link - http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=halifax,+ns&ll=44.649618,-63.66936&spn=0.001492,0.004128&gl=ca&t=h&z=19 it shows the Windmill overpass bridge structure under construction.

[worldlyhaligonian]

I think its taken from an old concrete structure that is nearby and can be seen on google earth / bing maps.

[fenwick16]

I think that I found it in Bing Maps - http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&cp=rf79ds9pv3qw&lvl=19.349014311462437&dir=92.62497837246889&sty=b&where1=Halifax%2C%20NS&form=LMLTCC. The roadway appears to be quite close; I wonder if it will be torn down - if not for the roadway then there is an apartment complex going in there.

Does anyone know the story behind that building?

[-Harlington-]

The building is real close to the road and its kinda cool looking so i hope they dont tear it down

i read online that nobody really knows what it is or what its from, theres a story on it in halifax history

[kph06]

I've heard its from an old radio tower, I was out there in the spring and there were large concrete block that would be ideal anchors for guy wires. I suspect it will disappear with the development.

[beyeas]

Wow, not much progress on even a roadbed yet for all those millions.

I was amazed this weekend when I drove past this just how little progress there has been. It boggles the mind! There is no other reasonable city in North America where it would be acceptable for a road project of this size to take this long.

[Dmajackson]

Took a walk today;

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6083/6114276102_b8b5f1ea3d_z.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6189/6113733697_080dc1cdb2_z.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6078/6113736309_7dd51346d0_z.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6070/6113739579_1e3848f64e_z.jpg

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6195/6113742761_0f90ee5049_z.jpg

[rkannegi]

A little while back, sdm put up a post explaining "How to fuck up a construction project and bankrupt the city". Some may believe it's true, some may believe it's false. However, the design contractor, SNC Lavalin is being investigated for corruption related to a bridge project in Bangladesh. Even though it's a totally unrelated project from Washmill Lake, could the Washmill Lake project have fallen victim to this? Who knows... I hope not.

I will say that the Washmill Lake project took unusually long when compared to another project like Larry Uteck, Margeson Drive, or the current Hodder Avenue Interchange and Highway 11-17 twinning construction in Thunder Bay, ON (which involved some massive blasting and heavy grading).

At least they are finally laying the curbs for Washmill Lake. I guess it looks like Washmill Lake Drive will only be two lanes wide (whatever happened to the orginal 4-lane divided road that HRM talked about). On the upside, judging from what I have seen from the photos (and from the 102 myself) it looks like there may be a shared ped/bike path, which is better than having bikes on the road (which is the case for this road).

Here's the article about SNC Lavalin:

http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Canadian+authorities+probing+employees+Lavalin+Group/5358313/story.html

Canadian authorities probing employees of SNC-Lavalin Group


By Andrea Shalal-Esa and Tim Ahmann, Reuters

Canadian authorities are investigating employees of SNC-Lavalin Group Inc for possible corruption involving a $1.2 billion World Bank bridge project in Bangladesh, a bank spokesman said on Friday.

The World Bank said it had been informed that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police had raided several locations as part of their investigation. SNC-Lavalin confirmed it was cooperating with Canadian authorities, but gave no details.


Canadian authorities launched the probe following a referral from World Bank officials about alleged corruption in the bidding process for the Padma Bridge, a bank spokesman said. He said the bank was continuing its own investigation.


The World Bank approved financing for the Padma Bridge project in April, but had not disbursed any funds given the ongoing investigation, said the spokesman.


"We commend the Royal Canadian Mounted Police for its robust response to the World Bank referral and look forward to the outcome of its investigation," said the spokesman.


Leslie Quinton, a spokeswoman for SNC-Lavalin, said the company was assisting Canadian authorities with an investigation on a specific case, but gave no further details.


"We are complying fully with their requests and are not aware of any reason that would warrant such an investigation," Quinton said. "Because the situation is under investigation, we cannot comment any further."


Constable Julie Morel, spokeswoman for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, confirmed that the police agency had executed search warrants at several locations as part of an investigation of SNC-Lavalin employees on Thursday.


She declined to identify which locations or to provide any further details since the investigation was still under way.


The World Bank signed a 40-year deal in April to loan $1.2 billion to Bangladesh to build a bridge linking its underdeveloped south with the capital, Dhaka, and the country's main port, Chittagong.


An international consortium, led by the World Bank, last year agreed to lend Bangladesh up to $2.9 billion for the 6-km (4-mile) multi-purpose bridge over the river Padma.


The bridge, about 50 km (30 miles) south of Dhaka, is expected to be completed by 2014, improving transportation between Bangladesh and other countries, and establishing a missing link along the longest corridor under the Asian Highway Network that connects Tokyo to Istanbul.


The World Bank last week outlined its increased efforts to prevent and deter fraud and corruption. Over the past year, the bank said its new Preventive Services Unit (PSU) had helped build precautions against fraud into 48 high-risk projects in 29 countries with a total value of $14.1 billion.


The bank said it had trained over 2,700 government officials and bank staff on how to conduct forensic audits and identify suspicious transactions.



© Copyright (c) Reuters

[Keith P.]

Corruption in procurement processes in places like Bangladesh are a given. The surprise would be if any contractor was able to do business there without making payoffs to corrupt govt officials.

[DigitalNinja]

In Asia proper Corruption and pay offs are more like tips to the government officers for supporting a development or what ever it may be :P

In some countries it is a fact of life. Personally I see it no differently than some companies here and how they get their money in North America. All over the world the gap between rich and poor gets larger.

Only issue is that in places like China, Bangladesh, India etc... It is possible to take advantage of the current situation and increase your status. Here in North America it is so difficult right now to do anything like that. I have friends who are recent accounting graduates. They have handed out well over 50 resumes each, and have been lucky to get a single interview. Their marks are not bad either! 3.6-3.9 for a GPA.

But when they want 3-5 years relevant experience for an entry level job that pays 36 grand or less a year they cannot compete. All of these jobs are taken by friends or friends or people who know people in the companies.

After being in China last year and witnessing corruption first hand, it happens here just in a different way.

Back on topic though. I don't think there was any corruption in the washmill lake underpass, but didn't the price increase a substantial amount if I'm not mistaken?

[worldlyhaligonian]

Can't wait for the road network to be all hooked up.

[Dmajackson]

Took a walk today;

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6070/6113739579_1e3848f64e_z.jpg

Looking at the site plan for THE PANORAMA (http://www.halifax.ca/commcoun/ccc/documents/110913ccc4.pdf) this unusual building will become something unheard of in Halifax ... a parking lot. :haha:

[alps]

I was really hoping it would be painted and kept around as some sort of odd incongruent garden folly...something to break up the predictability of a new subdivision.

[someone123]

I was really hoping it would be painted and kept around as some sort of odd incongruent garden folly...something to break up the predictability of a new subdivision.

I don't think the sort of developer that proposes a 70s-style pod of apartments even considers such an idea.

[PaulieShore]

This is probably the worst project I've seen in a long time. Nothing from the original plan is being executed. It was supposed to be a 4 lane divided road similar to the main drag in bayers lake. Now it looks like a 2 lane path which will most likely defeat the whole purpose... What a disaster... What is it now, 15 million over budget and a year overdue? Are they on the final phase? Any completion dates set in stone yet?

[beyeas]

No question this entire project has been a disaster.
Millions of dollars spent creating a two lane road through the woods simply to make it easier for people in Fairview to drive their car from bigbox to bigbox.
Par for the course though with BLIP, which has been a planning disaster since it began.

[kph06]

Apparently the original plan called for a 4 lane road that squeezed down to 2 lanes under the over pass to save money. This would have created a real bottleneck, luckily it was kyboshed.

[Keith P.]

Adding to the mismanagement of this entire project: today the 102 inbound was squeezed down to 1 lane inbound. Why? Dexter Construction was working on the actual overpass part of the project, stripping up the pavement in prep for repaving. This pavement was one year old and it was very rough. Why that was I do not know. But now it is being redone. What waste!

[kph06]

Adding to the mismanagement of this entire project: today the 102 inbound was squeezed down to 1 lane inbound. Why? Dexter Construction was working on the actual overpass part of the project, stripping up the pavement in prep for repaving. This pavement was one year old and it was very rough. Why that was I do not know. But now it is being redone. What waste!

That was just temporary asphalt as it was put down after the paving deadline in winter, so it had to be replaced during the Dept. of Transportation's approved paving window. Usually the expense of temporary asphalt is covered by the contractor if the contract allowed reasonable time to pave by the deadline. I'm just surprised it took this long to fix it. There was a nasty dip that I'm sure some people bottomed out on if they were going too fast.

[worldlyhaligonian]

This project has pedestrian, bike access though, I would prefer to enter bayers lake through this side by car as well (take CP exit and make a left up the hill, bang you're there.

There is going to be development surrounding this.

[PaulieShore]

This project has pedestrian, bike access though, I would prefer to enter bayers lake through this side by car as well (take CP exit and make a left up the hill, bang you're there.

There is going to be development surrounding this.

I agree, this new entry into Bayers lake is needed for the expansion plans they have. I drive through Bayers Lake every morning, and every evening. In the mornings I drop my fiancee off at work. I come from the North End of Halifax of downtown, through the Windsor Street Exchange, onto Joe Howe, and then onto the 102. Then I take the exit onto the 103 and into the back of the park. It's such a waste of gas since I'm on Joe howe every day anyway. Then I actually need to drive all the way back to Joe Howe because that's where I work. To do that I drive Lacewood from Bayers Lake, through Clayton Park, and eventually to Dutch Village, then Joe Howe. It's a massive circle every morning and beleive it or not, it takes 35 minutes with traffic. 50 minutes when Lacewood is backed up.

Having this new entry point into Bayers Lake will allow me to avoid the highways, and also avoid Lacewood (and the 15 traffic lights) eventually saving me gas. Not to mention, Metro Transit will most likely use this route to resolve the massive Transit constraint in Bayers Lake (which is why I have to drive there every morning in the first place).

So yes, it's a good idea to have the new road. But the way it was handled from the beginning was horrible. Worst HRM project in modern history...

[Keith P.]

Caught a glimpse of the road up towards Fairview as I went down the 102 yesterday. They now have curb/gutter, sidewalks, and dandelion sodding in place. The roadway looks even more narrow than before. It barely looks wide enough for 2 lanes, and forget about a bike lane (always recommended in any case). In addition it seems very steep. I really wonder what the heck this is going to be like.

[PaulieShore]

They have most of it paved now. It just seems they are finishing the Chain Lake/Washmill intersection. I drove up Main St the other day and it appears to be paved the entire way - with bike lanes. According to a couple of articles I read recently, the road should be open in a week or so.

[q12]

They were paving the final part in front of Best Buy up to the intersection with Chain Lake Drive last night. I wonder if its opening this weekend, or maybe this week.

[kph06]

I heard it was suppose to open this weekend, haven't been up there to confirm, but yesterday they sure had a big crew paving.

[PaulieShore]

It wasn't open this morning. Hopefully it opens up this week!

[q12]

Okay so this is wide enough for four lanes to the underpass than down to two lanes under the overpass than back to four lanes just after the underpass. WTF? :shrug: :koko: :hell: :gaah: :breakcomp: :brickwall:

Did we not learn anything from the traffic problems Bayers Lake's has had over the past two decades? And we are about to more than double the retail in there.

[-Harlington-]

Should be open by sometime next week, looked like they were just finishing up basicly :


http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6229/6311171606_7a37a3d75b.jpg


http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6093/6310651795_ca809ef8e2.jpg


http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6055/6311186514_37f0e0b378.jpg


http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6100/6310669153_981c2bd328.jpg


http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6236/6311189872_c918f01b94.jpg


that looks like a proper bayers lake entrance alright
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6045/6310673947_9cf0f85193.jpg

[fenwick16]

Should be open by sometime next week, looked like they were just finishing up basicly :
.
.
.
that looks like a proper bayers lake entrance alright
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6045/6310673947_9cf0f85193.jpg

In this picture there appears to be room for one or two more lanes.

[Keith P.]

They built a cartpath instead of a proper road.

As of Friday evening it is still closed.

[Jstaleness]

This has been doomed since the beginning. Not surprised it turned out like this.

[jslath]

In this picture there appears to be room for one or two more lanes.

Definitely room for four lanes if they remove the bike lanes and shorten the green space. I often wonder how useful bike lanes are in our climate. Ottawa has installed a lot of bike lanes over the past few year. Although they look great (more than a white paint line), they aren't frequently used.

[Keith P.]

Definitely room for four lanes if they remove the bike lanes and shorten the green space. I often wonder how useful bike lanes are in our climate. Ottawa has installed a lot of bike lanes over the past few year. Although they look great (more than a white paint line), they aren't frequently used.

In the big-picture view, they are utterly useless, catering to a fringe group yet burdening the taxpayer and citizenry with huge costs, both financial and, as in this case, opportunity costs - we could have had a decent roadway if not for these. Instead we have something that looks more like a driveway.

[fenwick16]

I really don't understand the road layout. Much of the space under the bridge is green space. Can someone explain why so much green space is required under the bridge?

I did a rough measurement of the bridge opening in Google Earth and got 77 feet between bridge supports. Since road lanes are 11 - 12 feet wide, there should be room for 4 lanes, a couple sidewalks (or at least one) and a bike lane (maybe even two). What am I missing; why is the green space required?

Maybe this is just temporary.

[PaulieShore]

There is enough room for 4 lanes, 2 bike lanes, and 2 sidewalks with a couple feet to spare. I have no freaking clue why they did that. It makes no sense...

[q12]

There is enough room for 4 lanes, 2 bike lanes, and 2 sidewalks with a couple feet to spare. I have no freaking clue why they did that. It makes no sense...

So they open it in time for the annual Christmas GRIDLOCK at BL. Everyone will be bitching about it and next year they will go and tear it up and re-do it with 4 lanes. It's the HRM way!

[Keith P.]

Maybe this is just temporary.

It has taken them 2 years and besides, it utilizes cement curb and gutter. Neither would suggest it is temporary.

[someone123]

This would be a funnier joke if it didn't have cost overruns in the millions of dollars.

[-Harlington-]

This would be a funnier joke if it didn't have cost overruns in the millions of dollars.

My thoughts exactly, it is a joke

[ScovaNotian]

Might this have been the only way to finish it without going even further over budget?

[fenwick16]

It has taken them 2 years and besides, it utilizes cement curb and gutter. Neither would suggest it is temporary.

I am sure that you realize that I mean the 2 lanes instead of 4 lanes is temporary (would permanent for the immediate future be better wording?). Yes, the curb does seem to indicate that it is permanent but the wide green spaces seems to indicate that there is room for more lanes in the future. It appears to be wider than this 4 lane underpass - http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=halifax+ns&hl=en&ll=44.68471,-63.676822&spn=0.001615,0.004128&hnear=Halifax,+Halifax+County,+Nova+Scotia&t=h&z=19&vpsrc=6&layer=c&cbll=44.684764,-63.676969&panoid=lNYJExLoPzN3TLMvVrZRBg&cbp=12,302.56,,0,17.78 .

There must be an explanation from someone who knows more than we do. Maybe they built only 2 lanes instead of 4 lanes to save a few hundred thousand dollars, but it might have the opening width to be expanded in the future? After all, Councillor Watts wanted to leave it unfinished as a symbol of HRM's fiscal responsibility. I read a bit in the HRM minutes, but couldn't find an explanation for the 2 lanes; I can't imagine that someone decided to build a traffic bottleneck just to have green space under a bridge, which won't be able to grow grass without sunlight.

[q12]

It appears to be wider than this 4 lane underpass - http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=halifax+ns&hl=en&ll=44.68471,-63.676822&spn=0.001615,0.004128&hnear=Halifax,+Halifax+County,+Nova+Scotia&t=h&z=19&vpsrc=6&layer=c&cbll=44.684764,-63.676969&panoid=lNYJExLoPzN3TLMvVrZRBg&cbp=12,302.56,,0,17.78 .

:previous:
This is actually three lanes under the overpass and a narrow sidewalk.
The nice thing about this overpass is it's wide enough for six lanes above to carry Highway 102. It's amazing that decades ago DOT had enough sense to build most of the Bi-Hi overpasses six lanes wide for future expansion. This includes the new washmill lake underpass which has five lanes above with room for atleast one more.


I can't imagine that someone decided to build a traffic bottleneck just to have green space under a bridge, which won't be able to grow grass without sunlight.

I agree, this makes no sense. Maybe someone at HRM is planning on putting a community garden in the greenspace under the overpass? :tumbleweed

[fenwick16]

:previous:
This is actually three lanes under the overpass and a narrow sidewalk.
The nice thing about this overpass is it's wide enough for six lanes above to carry Highway 102. It's amazing that decades ago DOT had enough sense to build most of the Bi-Hi overpasses six lanes wide for future expansion. This includes the new washmill lake underpass which has five lanes above with room for atleast one more.

My mistake, it is only 3 lanes but one lane looks to be wider than a normal width lane. When I checked this underpass fairly carefully with the ruler in Google Earth I get a clear width of 50 feet for the Kearney Lake Road underpass (http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=halifax+ns&hl=en&ll=44.684914,-63.676946&spn=0.001623,0.004128&hnear=Halifax,+Halifax+County,+Nova+Scotia&t=h&vpsrc=6&z=19). Although the Washmill Lake underpass was under construction when the Google Earth imagery (and Google Maps imagery) was updated, I get an opening width of 77 feet. So I feel confident that there is enough room for 4 lanes, sidewalks and bike lanes throught the Washmill Lake underpass.

I have a feeling that the 2 lanes will be increased to 4 lanes in a couple years once the focus on the budget over-run has been largely forgotten

[worldlyhaligonian]

My mistake, it is only 3 lanes but one lane looks to be wider than a normal width lane. When I checked this underpass fairly carefully with the ruler in Google Earth I get a clear width of 50 feet for the Kearney Lake Road underpass (http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=halifax+ns&hl=en&ll=44.684914,-63.676946&spn=0.001623,0.004128&hnear=Halifax,+Halifax+County,+Nova+Scotia&t=h&vpsrc=6&z=19). Although the Washmill Lake underpass was under construction when the Google Earth imagery (and Google Maps imagery) was updated, I get an opening width of 77 feet. So I feel confident that there is enough room for 4 lanes, sidewalks and bike lanes throught the Washmill Lake underpass.

I have a feeling that the 2 lanes will be increased to 4 lanes in a couple years once the focus on the budget over-run has been largely forgotten

Yeah, but I wish they just did it initially. This is the HRM, sometimes widening the road is more of an issue of resistance.

[PaulieShore]

Still not open. I have not seen any work being done since last Wednesday. I saw a couple of cars parked along the side of the hill and that was it. I see new telephone polls, but no lights or cables. The positioning of these polls is interesting, though. They will need to be moved once HRM realizes they need 4 lanes... Such nonsense...

[q12]

Still not open...

[Keith P.]

Not open today, Nov. 28th...

[rkannegi]

As of 12:00 am Nov 30, it's still closed. What in hell is taking them so long? I know they have the street lights up east of the 102. They said 2-3 weeks, well, it's almost 4 weeks and there's absolutely no mention of an expected opening date. What is going on? HRM had better have a good reason for this.

What would be really funny is if the road is still closed come Christmas Day, at which point, I would certainly expect an epic scandal to break out at city hall (if the delay actually gets that long).

[jslath]

As of 12:00 am Nov 30, it's still closed. What in hell is taking them so long? I know they have the street lights up east of the 102. They said 2-3 weeks, well, it's almost 4 weeks and there's absolutely no mention of an expected opening date. What is going on? HRM had better have a good reason for this.

What would be really funny is if the road is still closed come Christmas Day, at which point, I would certainly expect an epic scandal to break out at city hall (if the delay actually gets that long).

I was just thumbing through the halifax.ca website. It still reads that the pass will completed 31-Mar-2011.

"Provincial/Municipal Infrastructure stimulus project are well underway. Construction beginning along side the Highway Construction of the entire HRM project is anticipated to be completed by March 31, 2011 and the private developer completion of the remaining portions of Regency Park Drive are expected to follow closely behind." Washmill Lake Extension (http://www.halifax.ca/business_parks/WashmillLakeExtension.html)

D'oh!

[Jstaleness]

There is currently a "behind closed door" meeting where council is meeting to decide who is going to take the blame for this.

[PaulieShore]

There is currently a "behind closed door" meeting where council is meeting to decide who is going to take the blame for this.

I wonder if the doors are still closed... :shrug: My wife got another job, which is not in Bayers Lake, because it was too difficult to get in and out of the park. The bus routes out there are awful (although I did hear they changed the 52).

I now I hear people are crying because the bus route doesn't go through the parking lot anymore. Wow...

[Keith P.]

I now I hear people are crying because the bus route doesn't go through the parking lot anymore. Wow...

It's a real problem, because the destinations people want to visit are a long distance from the main drag through there and there are no pedestrian walkwways to get then there from the road. Look at the ridiculous setup by the Superstore and Walmart. There is a long walk uphill that requires one to either climb a steep grassy bank or walk in the middle of traffic along the entry road because there is no other place.

TPTB need to route the buses in front of the stores and if that means reconfiguring the parking lots to accommodate it, then so be it.

[Waye Mason]

It's a real problem, because the destinations people want to visit are a long distance from the main drag through there and there are no pedestrian walkwways to get then there from the road. Look at the ridiculous setup by the Superstore and Walmart. There is a long walk uphill that requires one to either climb a steep grassy bank or walk in the middle of traffic along the entry road because there is no other place.

TPTB need to route the buses in front of the stores and if that means reconfiguring the parking lots to accommodate it, then so be it.

:previous: This.

Hey urban planners, can a municipality demand better design for parking lots at large commercial spaces? BL is bad, but so is almost every Empire strip mall... everywhere.

[Keith P.]

:previous: This.

Hey urban planners, can a municipality demand better design for parking lots at large commercial spaces? BL is bad, but so is almost every Empire strip mall... everywhere.

I must be getting soft in my old age. Mason and I are agreeing with each other far too often these days.

:D

[Waye Mason]

I must be getting soft in my old age. Mason and I are agreeing with each other far too often these days.

:D

KP, look, go watch Fox News for 24 hours, and I'll go listen to NPR streaming audio, let's meet back here same time tomorrow and see how many things we then can fight about.

[worldlyhaligonian]

All political spectrums meet somewhere...

In Halifax, everybody is a cynic.

[wackypacky]

I must be getting soft in my old age. Mason and I are agreeing with each other far too often these days.

:D

Pretty basic stuff, Dont know too many people who would complain about some steps or leveling the grade a bit. It would be funny if you tore him up about it though hah:)

[wackypacky]

Wait.....I have a brilliant idea, lets build some new sidewalks, somewhere, anywhere really.....anyone disagree?