Loyalist Township is repairing flood-damaged roads on Amherst Island. A copy of the design drawings can be found on the project website below. The infrastructure to be improved through this project include portions of Front Road, Second Concession Road, Third Concession Road, and South Shore Road.
June 22, 2023: Guiderails have been installed in the project areas on South Shore Road, where indicated by the Township's consulting engineer. Staff will review other locations where edge-marking may present a concern.
Project-related concerns can be directed to:
Joe Gratton
Project Supervisor
Tel: 613-386-7351 Ext. 172
Email Joe Gratton
Past Project Updates:
June 6, 2023: Road reconstruction continues this week, with the contractor currently working on Second Concession Road. Also this week, guiderail installation in the project areas on South Shore Road will get underway. Landscape reconstruction is expected to begin soon, with tree replacement anticipated in the fall.
May 10, 2023: R.W. Tomlinson Limited will implement a full closure of South Shore Road at civic address 3850. The closures will be in place on May 15, 16, and 17, 2023, from 8 am - 5 pm daily, to replace cross culverts. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
May 5, 2023: R.W. Tomlinson will return to Amherst Island on May 9, 2023 to prepare to continue the reconstruction of Amherst Island flood-damaged roads. The next phase of work will begin on Second Concession Road. Township staff will be onsite throughout, and we will continue to provide updates as the work progresses.
March 2023 – The shoreline work has been completed. Heavy construction traffic is restricted on some Township roads until seasonal road restrictions are lifted to help protect the roadbed when the ground is soft due to thawing. The remaining road reconstruction work will start after May 1, 2023, and is expected to be completed mid-summer, pending any unforeseen delays.
January 2023 – The contractor is finishing work on South Shore Road and moving to Third Concession Road, while a second crew will start working on Second Concession Road. In the coming weeks, an assessment for the possibility of a guardrail will also occur on South Shore Road and Front Road.
December 2022 – The construction contractor, R.W. Tomlinson Ltd., has started breaking rock and installing the shoreline on South Shore Road. Residents could experience impacts on traffic as work is planned to carry on through the winter, weather permitting. The contractor might also start preparing and stockpiling in preparation for work on the Second Concession Road as well.
October 18, 2022 - A letter from R.W. Tomlinson Ltd. was distributed to Amherst Island residents regarding the upcoming work. A copy of the letter can be found here.
March 1, 2022 - A virtual information session for the community was held on Tuesday, March 1st, 2022. A recording of the session has been uploaded to the project page.
February 11, 2022 - A project letter was circulated via Canada Post to Island residents in the project area. A Site Access Construction Agreement was included with the letter authorizing Township staff to complete flood damage repair work on property outside of the traveled portion of the road, without prejudice to the right of either party to dispute the ownership of any portion of the shore of Lake Ontario in the future.
April 15, 2020 - Loyalist Township Staff is continuing work with its consultant to design the repairs to flood damaged roads on Amherst Island. A copy of the follow up letter is available here: April 15, 2020 – Letter to Amherst Island Residents
May 25, 2020 - A follow-up to the April 15 project letter is being sent today to those who signed up to receive email updates on this project. A copy of the follow up letter is available here: May 25, 2020 – Letter to Amherst Island Residents
November 26, 2019 - A Public Meeting at the Amherst Island Fire Hall was held to get resident feedback regarding flood repairs on Amherst Island roads.
Amherst Island Flood-Damaged Road Repairs Public Information Webinar:
A virtual public information session was held on Tuesday, March 1, 2022, at 6 p.m. Staff were on hand to present the design drawings, receive feedback, and answer questions on the project. The session was recorded for those who are unable to attend, and transcribed.
Click the thumbnail below to watch the full webinar recording.
At this stage of the project, a draft design has been prepared and is available for review below.
Draft Designs, Site Access Construction Agreement & Species at Risk Assessment Report
Flood Damage Repair Design - 2nd Concession Road
Flood Damage Repair Design - 3rd Concession Road
Flood Damage Repair Design - Front Road
Flood Damage Repair Design - South Shore Road
Flood Damage Repair Design - Additional South Shore Road Section
Site Access Construction Agreement
Species at Risk Assessment Report
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Where is the damage?
We hired BTE, a civil engineering firm, to prepare reports showing the areas and amount of damage from flooding in 2017 (PDF, 10MB) and in 2019 (PDF, 15MB).
The repairs are being made to the damages from 2017's flooding
The repairs we're planning are related to the damages to shore roads from flood water in 2017. The repairs will be partly paid for by the province of Ontario's 2017 Municipal Disaster Recovery Assistance (MDRA) program. This program provides financial assistance to help eligible Ontario municipalities recover from natural disasters. When the province activates the program, municipalities can file a claim for financial assistance. The program is very specific about which costs qualify for provincial financial help. It limits operating costs to those that protect public health, safety and access to essential services, while capital costs include only those required to repair public infrastructure or property to the condition it was in before the flooding.
The province also sets a minimum threshold for costs. The threshold is a percentage of the Township's Municipal claims are only accepted by the province if the eligible costs under the claim reach a provincially defined threshold of 3% of the municipality's Own Purpose Taxation levy. The eligible costs associated with the Township's 2017 claim met the threshold and the Township's claim for financial help has been approved for 2017 damages.
What about damages from the 2019 high water levels?
Unfortunately, the additional damages sustained in 2019 were not significant enough in themselves to qualify for the same program. For that reason, we also failed to qualify for the Climate Resilience Incentive, which is only available to municipalities under the 2019 program. More information on the Climate Resilience program can be found in the Climate Resilience Incentive Info Sheet.
What happens now?
If you were unable to attend the information meeting, you can sign up below to have your name added to the Project Update distribution list. You'll receive email updates as soon as new information is available.
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