By Cecilia Nasmith
Electrical work at the marina that has long been needed should be completed by July 3, Cobourg council heard at Tuesday's meeting.
The marina electrical shore power upgrade work contract has been awarded to Lakeland Multi-trade (Cobourg) in the amount of $262,500 (excluding HST) to be funded from the 2020 capital budget (where the approved amount for this work had been $310,000). The work will address disruptions boaters have experienced in recent years, particularly during flood-level waters in 2017 and 2019.
As she put the motion forward, Councillor Emily Chorley admitted to mixed feelings.
“I do believe we need to upgrade the electrical services at the marina,” Chorley said.
“The boaters have made that very clear, and we have had, two of the last three years, power disruptions at the dock which really impacts the service the boaters are receiving.
“But in light of COVID-19, I question whether now really is the time to spend a half-million dollars on this upgrade, given that we would be taking on debt,” she explained.
“But given that this lack of power to the docks has been a major disruption to the boaters, I can support this. They will do an excellent job, and they have come in under budget.”
Community and Social Services Division Director Dean Hustwick said the work would be both timely and comprehensive.
“You are always hearing stories about municipalities digging up roads and replacing roads, and then a short time later digging them up again to upgrade the electrical system because they didn't plan the steps appropriately,” Hustwick said.
“We are upgrading the system now to accommodate all those future decisions down the road.”
