The Mayor’s Council Update – January 26, 2021

This week at Council, the Region provided an update concerning their ongoing sinkhole construction at Yonge and Industrial Parkway. As a Regional Road this is their responsibility. This sinkhole has been a recurring issue for over a decade since this is a natural low point in the road, and while there have been numerous short term fixes, ultimately none successfully solved the problem.

In spring 2020, the Region began reconstructing and expanding an infiltration gallery to continually move the water and stop the road from collapsing. The road will also be supported by a concrete slab adding much needed stability. As work began on the expanded infiltration gallery crews needed to drawdown the water and unfortunately, the ground conditions were not as expected. While everyone recognized the water table is high in this area (which is the underlying cause of the issue), the high level of zinc in the water was unexpected. Therefore, this required a new permit from the Ministry to dump it properly and safely. Since even government projects require permits before work can be done, obtaining a new permit resulted in delays. Like any construction project, while you investigate and test, you truly don’t know what to expect until you begin. I am sure many have experienced similar unexpected discoveries with home renovations. 

Some residents have expressed concern that during construction no left turns are allowed onto Industrial travelling southbound on Yonge. Unfortunately, there is not enough road space to allow for the turn lane to be active while construction is happening.

The good news is, work is back underway and this long standing issue will finally be fixed. Regional staff have also reassured us that completion of this project is expected before fall 2021.