Heart FM Local News
The location of a fire hydrant on Victoria St. North has been a subject of contention.
The road is being reconstructed, leading to a need to relocate a fire hydrant that was going to be too close to a hydro pole.
When the city moved it, it drew a resident complaint. The hydrant was going to be in the path of a future driveway leading to a new garage the homeowner planned on building.
City CAO David Creery says the new location was a decision made in the field, without consulting the property owner.
Following the complaint, the city went back to the drawing board and after a discussion with the project engineers, they decided to relocate it again. Creery says, "At this point the cost to relocate the hydrant is significantly less than moving it after the road is complete." Creery says it amounts to "a few thousand dollars" on a project of over $840,000.
There's been some suggestions in a local Facebook Group (WNG), that because the homeowner complained to Councillor Sandra Talbot, there was political influence over the city's decision to move the hydrant.
City CAO David Creery says that's not the case. "We received a complaint through a councillor. It's not uncommon for residents to direct complaints through councillors. We investigate any complaint directed through a councillor in the same way that we receive complaints directly from residents. After the complaint was received, the matter was reviewed...and it was determined that rather than risk having to relocated the hydrant at some point in the future, it was better for us to relocate the hydrant now, before the road is complete."
Creery adds moving the fire hydrant does not affect its coverage area.
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