An additional $450,000 has been added to the Seventh St. pump station project for upgrades which were required sooner than anticipated. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

pump up the volume

Growth, extreme weather behind budget increase for Chase River pump station upgrades

Feb 22, 2024 | 11:17 AM

NANAIMO — An important piece of infrastructure which keeps sewers flowing freely in Chase River is getting an upgrade sooner than planned.

Nanaimo’s Seventh St. pump station, located at the corner of Park Ave., had its upgrade budget increased by $450,000 to strengthen the system for future population growth and to be better prepared for major weather events.

City general manager of engineering and public works Bill Sims said the original plan was to upgrade the system before 2031, but it’s happening sooner than they anticipated.

“Partly due to growth, but also partly due to the rainstorm that we saw in November of 2021, where it actually overwhelmed the system. Not ideal, but a number of connections allow rainwater into the system.”

This upgrade will help reduce the risk of sewer overflow during when times of high precipitation, according to the City, with the additional funding approved during a finance and audit committee meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 21.

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Council will formally vote on the additional funding, likely as part of their consent agenda, at a future meeting.

Sims said the increased price tag is due to a few factors beyond their control.

“One of them is due to the complexity of changing the pumps or installing pumps in the middle of a life, working station, is significantly more complex than our engineering firm originally thought, that’s one piece of it. The other is that aluminum and stainless fabrication associated came in a lot higher than expected as well.”

In 2023, $1 million was dedicated to upgrading this pump system, with over $420,000 spent last year to increase capacity, as well as odour control upgrades, and the installation of a platform within the station.

The remaining amount, together with the latest $450,000, brings the total for this project to $1.45 million.

The additional funding is coming from the sewer development cost charges reserve fund ($288,000), and the sewer asset management reserve fund. ($162,000).

Upgrade work is expected to be completed by the spring, and Sims said it should serve the community well for at least another decade or two before further upgrades would need to be considered.

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jordan@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow