Halifax Water plans major upgrades within Windsor Street exchange project

Haley Ryan · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 17, 2025 2:52 PM EDT | Last Updated: 8 minutes ago

Halifax Water is readying multi-million dollar infrastructure upgrades arsenic portion of the Windsor Street speech redevelopment, including the replacement of "high-risk" pieces captious to delivering h2o to the peninsula.

Earlier this month, the inferior asked the Nova Scotia Regulatory and Appeals Board (formerly the Utility and Review Board) to o.k. $69.2 cardinal successful operation and plan costs for multiple infrastructure changes.

In their application, Halifax Water said these upgrades are needed wrong the adjacent fewer years, truthful it makes consciousness to implicit the enactment portion the country volition already beryllium nether construction. They said integrating the enactment volition prevention taxpayers money, and person little interaction connected the public.

About $43 cardinal successful operation costs volition beryllium spent connected section water, wastewater and stormwater upgrades to regenerate aging pipes that are nearing their extremity of life.

Pipes volition beryllium amended aligned with the caller roadway layout, the exertion said, successful immoderate cases moving infrastructure nether the thoroughfare alternatively than needing easements to transverse backstage land.

About $13.7 cardinal volition beryllium utilized to regenerate the North End Feeder (NEF) transmission main, which is simply a pre-stressed factual cylinder tube that supplies astir of the h2o to the peninsula's northbound end. It was built successful the mid-1970s and is entering its 48th year, with a lifespan of astir 50 to 75 years.

The exertion said this transmission main is considered "high risk" due to the fact that it's not easy accessible arsenic it's located successful a heavy passageway beneath oversea level. The tube is nether "significantly precocious pressures with chartless information and would beryllium catastrophic if it were to fail," Halifax Water said.

A caller transmission main volition beryllium installed astatine a shallower extent on a antithetic alignment to the existing pipe, to grip expected increases successful h2o request and let the strategy to run adjacent with 1 of the mains retired of service.

The remaining $12.2 cardinal volition spell to a sewer separation task to enactment the planned lodging maturation successful the Young Street area. A caller stormwater tube volition spell from the extremity of Kempt Road done the Windsor Street speech to link to an existing tube connected Bayne Street.

Millions much dollars successful upgrades volition beryllium needed for some the Young Street sewer separation and North End Feeder main extracurricular of this project, but the inferior said they volition petition support for those funds astatine a aboriginal date.

Halifax Water said astir of the operation costs volition beryllium funded by debt, but the inferior has besides applied for national backing nether the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund (CHIF). They are awaiting the effect of that request.

Municipal unit person said operation connected the wide Windsor Street speech redevelopment volition commencement this year. 

Halifax is redesigning the important intersection to amended motortruck and car postulation done the area, and make a caller multi-use way for cyclists and pedestrians. Some transit-only lanes volition beryllium created, but two-way autobus lanes volition travel during the 2nd signifier of the task successful a fewer years due to the fact that the roadworthy indispensable beryllium widened.

The full $150-million task is being outgo shared with the national and provincial governments, Halifax Water and Port of Halifax. The Halifax municipality's stock is astir $53 million.