After attending the Sydenham Challenge Dragon Boat Festival over the weekend in Wallaceburg, a local citizen had some concerns about the boardwalk along the Sydenham River.
“What a fantastic Dragon Boat Races that were held this past Saturday,” said Michael Verstappen on social media.
“On another note, I am curious if anyone would know who to contact in Wallaceburg about the awful condition of the (planks) on the boardwalk along the river. I first noticed they were bad last WAMBO… but this past weekend I noticed that they are extremely more dangerous, so many boards are loose and uneven, it’s like up and down with each step.
Verstappen added: “It’s a shame they have gotten so bad and unattended. Surely if left to continue to be this way there is chance of someone tripping and falling.”
The Sydenham Current passed Verstappen’s concern over to Wallaceburg Coun. Jeff Wesley, who then forwarded the concerns over to Chatham-Kent staff.
Jane McGee, supervisor of recreation facilities in Wallaceburg, visited the section of boardwalk, which extends from the base of the Dundas Street Bridge to where it meets with an adjacent cement walkway.
“A few years back I had asked engineering to review this particular area,” McGee said in an e-mail.
“I had hoped that it might be able to be included in a capital budget request to be cemented. The review, at that time, was it was not in a state that required it to be redone.”
McGee added: “There are a few boards that we will replace and there are a few that we will re-secure. It is however a wooden boardwalk and as such will have some give and play within the structure. There were a lot of people on the boardwalk during the Dragon Boat Festival and I’m sure with the give in wood alone it would vibrate.”
McGee said the possibility will be explored to replace the area with cement in the future.
Evelyn Bish, director of community services, said in an e-mail that engineering will look into the issue as well.
“We should do a cost/benefit analysis to determine if it should remain wood, or whether the request for cement should be placed in the 2016 capital budget,” Bish said.
Chatham-Kent crews were at the location on Thursday morning doing some of the patch work that McGee had eluded to.
Here are some photos:
