3 • Blyth Kids Club 4 • Editorials 8 • Sports 11 • Farms to Tables
The
THIS WEEK
Citizen
Huron County’s most trusted independent news source
Friday, July 14, 2023
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Volume 39 No. 28
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BMGCC nearing finish line By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen
Just a bit outside The fifth annual Dungannon Pro Rodeo went ahead in the rain and the mud on Saturday to bring top-notch rodeo action to Huron County and, among other things, raise funds for the Lucknow and District Fire
Department. The annual tradition has only served to grow in the local estimations, with attendance robust again this year, despite the weather-related challenges faced by the event’s Saturday offerings this year. (Scott Stephenson photo)
While the contingency fund for the project has been fully depleted, the renovated and expanded Brussels, Morris and Grey Community Centre should be open and reach “substantial completion” by the end of October. Huron East Chief Administrative Officer Brad McRoberts provided this update for council at its July 4 meeting. Council had requested an update on the project at a previous meeting. He told council that while the project itself should be fundamentally completed by the end of October, the ice surface should be ready to host hockey games during the traditional season starting at a point in late September or early October. “The project continues to be posed with unforeseen challenges due to either unknown and undocumented existing conditions or unknown and undocumented construction methods used in the existing structure,” McRoberts said in his report to council. “While these circumstances continue, the magnitude cost of the required change orders has decreased.” McRoberts noted three key issues that had arisen between March and Continued on page 2
County moves ahead with climate risk assessment By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen Huron County is moving ahead with a climate risk assessment to manage critical transportation infrastructure in the face of climate change in the years to come. Climate Changes and Energy Specialist Derry Wallis spoke to the proposal at Huron County Council’s July 5 meeting. She recommended awarding the contract to WSP consulting firm for $25,720 plus HST. “The completion of a climate risk assessment of the county’s large bridges and culverts will help staff understand the level of vulnerability of each structure to make more informed decisions to prioritize the management and replacement of critical transportation infrastructure,” she said in her report. “This project aligns with goals and actions within
the county’s Corporate Climate Change Adaptation Plan to complete a risk assessment to determine the impacts of climate change on county infrastructure.” She noted that WSP will be contributing $13,110 of in-kind time and resources to the project, while Wallis advised that the rest of the project could be paid for with available gas tax funding. Sole sourcing for the project is permissible, she said, as WSP is the sole developer of the Portfolio Climate Risk Assessment Tool, which will allow the firm to conduct a climate risk assessment on all 291 of the county’s large bridges and culverts. “The climate risk assessment will be completed by the engineering consulting firm WSP using the Portfolio Climate Risk Assessment Tool they developed and the [Public Infrastructure Engineering Vulnerability Committee] PIEVC
Protocol, which provides a methodology to complete climate risk assessments for infrastructure. This protocol will be used to assess the resiliency of the county’s large bridges or culverts,” Wallis said in her report. “WSP will use information the county has on the bridges and culverts (i.e., size, asset class, location, age, etc.) and combine this data with climate
hazard information (i.e., flooding, temperature, storm surges, snow accumulation, etc.) to determine which infrastructure components are sensitive to changes in future climate conditions. “The output of this risk assessment will build on asset management work the county has completed. The county’s asset IDs will be used to analyze structures
during the risk assessment. This will allow staff to easily integrate climate risk information within the current asset management system to make more informed decisions regarding the future management of transportation infrastructure.” She told council that, as a result of the review, each asset will receive an overall risk level based Continued on page 28
Stingers remain undefeated By Shawn Loughlin The Citizen With 20 points and the stillperfect record of 10-0, the Belmore Stingers remain atop the Huron County Fastball League standings, six points clear of the second- and third-place teams. The Brussels Tigers remain in second place with a record of 7-1
and 14 points, while the Wingham Hitmen are in third place with a record of 7-3 and 14 points as well, hot on the heels of a very special performance by Mac Mulvey. The Milverton Millwrights are in fourth place after losing their first game of the season. The team has a record of 5-1 and 10 points, followed by the Mitchell Mets in fifth place with a record of 5-4 and
10 points and the sixth-place Sebringville Sting, also with 10 points and a record of 5-3. The Monkton Muskrats are in seventh place with a record of 3-5 and six points, followed by the Brussels Bangers and their record of 2-7-1 and five points, the Fullarton A’s in ninth place with four points and a record of 2-5, the Continued on page 8