Welcome to York Region’s Online open house for the upcoming construction of the Yonge
Street and Highway 7 Regional Centre sanitary sewer service in the cities of Richmond Hill
and Markham.
"We acknowledge that the land we are meeting on today is the traditional territory of many
First Nations, including the Chippewas of Georgina Island and the Mississaugas of the
Credit.
These lands are now home to many diverse Indigenous peoples.
We also acknowledge that York Region falls under Treaty 13 with the Mississaugas of the
Credit and the Williams Treaties with several Mississauga and Chippewas First Nations.”
This presentation provides an overview of the Yonge Street and Highway 7 Regional Centre
sanitary sewer construction including the project background, the schedule and work
completed to date, a description of the microtunnelling construction method, the general location
of planned improvements, and potential traffic impacts during construction.
We invite you to contact York Region’s Project Manager, Mark Ortiz, or to submit your questions
or comments to the team via the project website at york.ca/waterconstruction
In 2015, York Region completed a Municipal Class Environmental Assessment that identified
this new trunk sanitary sewer as part of the preferred solution.
The project includes building approximately 2 km of sewer primarily along along Highway
7 from Red Maple Road to east of Bayview Avenue.
Intersection improvements at Highway 7 and Silver Linden Drive and Highway 7 and Bayview
Avenue will be made to meet the requirements of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities
Act or AODA.
This project will provide wastewater servicing for the approved population growth at the
Yonge Street and Highway 7 Regional Centre, shown on the next slide.
The Yonge Street and Highway 7 Regional Centre is also known as Richmond Hill Centre and
Langstaff Gateway.
The area north of Highway 7 is within Richmond Hill and outlined in blue.
This area is referred to as the Richmond Hill Centre.
The area south of Highway 7 is within Markham and outlined in red.
This area is referred to as Langstaff Gateway.
The new trunk sanitary sewer will connect both Richmond Hill Centre and Langstaff Gateway
to the existing York Region trunk sewer known as the Richmond Hill Collector.
In 2014, the Region initiated a Municipal Class Environmental Assessment to identify
the wastewater servicing requirements for the Regional Centre.
The environmental assessment was completed in 2015, which was followed by the project
design from 2016 to 2020.
Construction is anticipated to start in 2021 and be completed by 2023.
The majority of the sanitary sewer will be installed via microtunnelling between each
of the 10 shafts.
The depth of the sewer ranges from 8m to 20m.
All the shafts and work areas will be enclosed by construction fencing.
A sample shaft compound is shown in the photo on this slide.
The majority of the construction activity occurs at the shaft compound.
The selected construction method will minimize the surface disturbance as most of the construction
activities and disturbances will occur at the 10 shaft locations.
In turn, microtunnelling minimizes disruption to roads, and soil removal from site.
What is Microtunnelling?
It is a type of trenchless construction that uses a laser-guided remote-controlled tunneling
machine to install pipe with minimal disruption at ground surface.
The figure shows some key components of Microtunnelling: 1.
Shaft Compound – is where there the majority of the visible construction activity occurs.
2.
Launch Shaft is the start of the microtunnelling drive..
3, 4, 5 The Microtunnelling Boring Machine, pipe and slurry lines and the shaft and jacking
frame.
They all work simultaneously to install the underground sewer.
The Microtunnel Boring Machine is controlled from the control cabin, the slurry line located
inside the pipes travels to and removes soil from the cutting face.
The Shaft and Jacking Frame installs and advances the pipes and Microtunnel Boring Machine.
This process is repeated until the Microtunnelling Boring machine reaches the reception shaft.
This slide shows photos of two compound layouts.
The compound configuration is based on the space constraints of the project site.
Each shaft compound contains the same components.
1.
A Slurry Separation Plant where the slurry and soil separation system are set-up.
2.
A Control Cabin that is set-up on the surface for the operator to control the Microtunnel
Boring Machine.
3.
A Shaft, which consists of a vertical access from the surface to the tunnel.
4.
An Excavator that is used to remove soil from the shaft during the installation of the shaft.
It can also be used for general compound maintenance.
5.
A Pipe storage area, where the pipes are stored to ensure supply is maintained; and finally,
6.
A Crane for lowering pipes into the shaft.
The majority of the new trunk sanitary sewer is located within the existing municipal and
regional road property limits or rights-of-way.
The project includes the construction of 10 shaft locations, and 2 km of sewer.
The new sewer will connect to an existing Richmond Hill sewer at Shaft 11 at the western
limit, and connect to an existing Regional Trunk sewer at Shaft 6 at the eastern limit.
Between these connection points, the sewer and shafts are located along Red Maple Road,
an existing utility corridor north of the hydro corridor, the east side of future Cedar
Avenue and then along the northside of Highway 7.
This slide highlights some of the key traffic impacts and management plans.
Access to businesses and residences will be provided at all times.
The Contractor will be responsible for notifying property owners of any temporary modification
to their driveways and any potential for temporary disruptions to their access, well in advance
of commencing any construction activities.
Police officers will be employed as required..
Shaft 6, and the access to shaft 6 is located within the German Mills Creek valley.
The construction limits will temporarily impact the existing pathway.
The Shaft 6 works are anticipated to occur during the winter months.
Temporary construction signs indicating that there is no access to Highway 7 will be located
at the trail heads between Bayview Avenue and Highway 7.
When the sewer is constructed within Shaft 6, the area will be restored, and the temporary
signage will be removed.
Shaft 5 and its compound will be located within the north boulevard of Highway 7 near the
existing Bell driveway.
The existing travel thru lanes along Highway 7 will be maintained.
A temporary driveway is required to maintain access to the existing Bell building.
The shaft within the north boulevard will impact the north sidewalk which will be temporarily
closed.
Sidewalk closure signage will be provided at from the lights east of Bayview Avenue
to the lights at Bavyiew Avenue.
Access to the existing Bayview Viva Bus Station will be maintained at all times.
Shaft 4 and its compound will be located within the north boulevard and right-turn lane at
Highway 7 and the connecting road to Bayview Avenue.
During Shaft 4 construction, temporary lights will be installed.
The existing travel thru lanes along Highway 7 will be maintained.
The westbound curb thru lane will be modified to be a thru/right during construction.
The shaft within the north boulevard will impact the north sidewalk which will be temporarily
closed.
Sidewalk closure signage will be provided from the lights east of Bayview Avenue to
the lights at Bavyiew Avenue.
The intersection will be restored to improve accessibility in accordance with the Accessibility
for Ontarians with Disabilities Act or (AODA).
Similar to the previous slide, Shaft 4A and its compound will be located within the north
boulevard and right-turn lane at Highway 7 and Silver Linden Drive.
During Shaft 4A construction, temporary lights will be installed.
The existing travel thru lanes along Highway 7 will be maintained.
The westbound curb thru lane will be modified to be a thru/right during construction.
The shaft within the north boulevard will impact the north sidewalk which will be temporarily
closed.
Sidewalk closure signage will be provided at Silver Linden Drive and Bayview Avenue.
The intersection will be restored to improve accessibility in accordance with the Accessibility
for Ontarians with Disabilities Act or (AODA).
Shafts 10, 9, and 1 are located in a parking lot north of the existing hydro corridor.
The parking lot is currently closed, and concrete barriers are placed at the entrances.
During construction access to the existing driveway will be maintained at tall times.
Shaft 11 is located on Red Maple Road, which has an existing five lane cross-section with
a centre turning lane and sidewalks on both sides.
For construction, the number of through lanes will be reduced to one lane of traffic in
each direction.
Shaft 11 will have two construction phases.
Phase 1, shown on this slide, includes the construction of the shaft compound.
The Home Depot property has two access points.
The north access point will be temporarily revised to a right-in entrance in Phase 1.
Full turning movements will be maintained at the south access and at the GO Parking
entrance.
Full traffic movements will be maintained at the intersections of Red Maple Road and
High Tech Road.
A temporary sidewalk will be provided at the impacted sidewalk location near the shaft.
As mentioned,, Shaft 11 will have two construction phases.
This slide focuses on the traffic impacts and management plans for Phase 2, the final
connection.
Phase 2 is the same as Phase 1 with the exception of the existing north entrance.
During Phase 2, the access to the north entrance will not be available and access to the Home
Depot will only be permitted at the south access.
Thank you for your participation.
Information presented today is available on the project website
york.ca/waterconstruction
If you have any questions or would like to request additional information, please contact:
Mr. Mark Ortiz York Region
Environmental Services at Mark.Ortiz@york.ca
General Inquiries: Access York
1-877-464-9675 accessyork@york.ca