Plenty of town projects in full swing

DIDSBURY - A number of projects are currently on the go in the town, including the 23rd Street upgrade, the Rosebud Lift Station and the Butte Pumphouse upgrades.

There is also continued construction on the Highway 582 bridge by Zion Church in Didsbury.

The 23rd Street project will see upgrades to a portion of 23rd Street from Southridge Coulee to 15th Avenue. The work is being done by IMC Construction Ltd. from Red Deer.

"The upgrades will see the installation of sidewalks, upgraded storm sewer infrastructure, upgrades to the road base, paving, new curbs, gutter and asphalt," said Greg Skotheim, Didsbury manager of public works and Infrastructure. "The project also includes extending a 300-millimetre line for future development west of 23rd Street."

Skotheim said that Phase 1 began earlier this month and focused on the north section of the road. Phase 1 is expected to be completed by mid-October.

"Phase 2 will begin in early November and focuses on the southern portion of this road," he said. "Detours are currently in place."

The Rosebud lift station project, which is located at the corner of Highway 582 and 10th Street, will see the construction of a new lift station to service all future development in the northwest portion of Didsbury.

"To date, the contractor has completed the tie-in to the old lift station and will now focus on the construction of a new, larger lift station building and its associated infrastructure," he said. "The project will continue for the next several months."

The Butte pumphouse upgrades will see new piping, valves, meters and pumps installed at the pumphouse located at the water tower by the golf course, he said.

"Construction for this project will begin in November and much of the work will be done off-site," he said. "It is an estimated one-month project that should have minimal impact on residents."

The Highway 582 bridge project over Rosebud Park on the east side of town continues. As a provincial highway, the work on the new bridge is being done by Alberta Transportation.

The expected completion date for the bridge is Oct. 15. The overall cost of the project is approximately $1.4 million.

The bridge was found to be unsafe about one year ago and was closed to traffic. A temporary bridge was built next to the main bridge shortly after.

"Since construction started on May 31, much work has been done on the project with traffic signage, detour maintenance, environment protection work and demolition of the old bridge," said Donald Saunders, bridge manager, Alberta Transportation.

The bridge project is a partnership between Alberta Transportation, the Town of Didsbury, and Greenfield Construction Ltd.