In the midst of the COVID-19 Emergency restrictions, most of Belleville’s capital projects are moving ahead, but one is in doubt.
CAO Rod Bovay tells Quinte News that road work is not at all restricted.
The widening of Bell Boulevard, water and sewer work and the Sagonaska Bridge rehabilitation are all underway.
Bovay says Avondale Road and Holmes Road and the sanitary sewer work are all going ahead but he says there could be some issues.
The initial work on the two-year project, a new pedestrian footbridge in the downtown, is of “some concern.”
He says the timeline is tight.
Under federal government rules, the city cannot get into the water until early July.
It has to be out by the end of November.
“That’s just barely enough time to get in and get the old bridge out and install the new centre pier this year. The situation with COVID-19, we’re not sure it’s worth the risk to get started on that one. We don’t want to get half done. Don’t want half started or half finished and not be able to finish what we want to do in the river this year.”
Bovay says high water in Lake Ontario and Bay of Quinte could be a real problem.
Bovay says city hall is working well under the restrictions with some staff working from home, which allows physical distancing at work.
