A handful of Westlock residents who have been most affected by the construction of the Westlock Rotary Spirit Centre have been offered a thank-you gift from the town.
CAO Darrell Garceau made the decision to offer eight residences at the west end of 99 St., directly opposite and adjacent to the Spirit Centre, credit for one year of town utilities — worth roughly $500 to $600 for each property.
“It’s one of those things that I can’t do it for all of 99 St.,” he said. “But for those who were absolutely impacted by the construction, I thought it was a good gesture just to thank them for enduring the past two years of construction.”
Specific disruptions he referred to include construction traffic, damage to the roadway and storm water runoff in the roadway.
“It was just a really deplorable state,” he said.
Seven properties on the north side of 99 St. were offered the compensation, as well as the property directly adjacent to the Spirit Centre on the south side.
“There was a time where we basically had to excavate their front yard,” he said. “They were impacted to a great degree and we’re just very thankful they were so accommodating.”
Ida Rousell, who has lived in that house for the past six years, said the one year of utilities is a nice gesture, but doesn’t go far enough to compensate for the disturbances she has experienced over the past several years.
“Every night they were up working late, I was up all night with them,” she said. “Some nights I was up three nights in a row with no sleep.”
She also expressed concern about increased traffic on the road, kids partying in the Spirit Centre lot and rodents moving from the torn up field into her house.
“The minute they broke ground, where are the mice and squirrels going to go? We’re the closest; they come into our house,” Rousell said.
Her basement also flooded for the first time since she’s lived there, something she suspects had to do with the water and sewer work done near and on her property.
“I’m not impressed, and I’m sure anyone close to the place will tell you the same thing,” she said.
One of her neighbours, Sabine Goller, said she was also frustrated by the construction process, citing many of the same concerns as Rousell. Goller works nights and sleeps days, so the construction noise hit her harder than most.
She also said the dust and mess associated with the construction has been a big inconvenience, enough to prevent her from wanting to use her deck for two summers. Traffic through the area also increased dramatically.
“We did have excessive amounts of traffic through here, which we’re not used to,” she said. “We have small children on either side of us and they used to ride their bikes on the street because there was no traffic here.”
Goller said she does see the positive side of the coin, as well, since she is now a stone’s throw from the new facility.
“I know we now have easy access to the facilities, which would be a plus if the kids want to use it,” she said. “It’s a beautiful place.”
As for the free utilities, Goller said it came as a pleasant surprise.
“It’s really quite nice; it is fair,” she said.
Mayor Bruce Lennon said he thought the gesture was a good one, especially considering the delays in construction.
“It’s just a gesture on behalf of the town saying look, things happen, we did our best and we appreciate you putting up with it,” he said. “I think it shows we’re thinking about our residents.”
