Storm Water Management - Stream Naturalization

[Acitta]

Virtual Open House on Apr. 4 for North Strasburg Creek Restoration

The City of Kitchener is hosting a live virtual open house. Staff and consultants will present proposed designs for restoring North Strasburg Creek. We want to hear from you!

When: Thursday, Apr. 4 at 6:30 p.m.

Where: Via Zoom. You must register for the Zoom meeting(External link) to receive the direct link and Meeting ID.

[ac3r]

I wish they would ditch the Zoom meetings...or at least let the public attend in person. Who the hell wants to sit in a Zoom call in 2024?

[KevinL]

Zoom meetings are much more accessible, whether due to mobility or schedule limitations. I doubt they're going away.

[tomh009]

Zoom meetings are much more accessible, whether due to mobility or schedule limitations. I doubt they're going away.

No issues with meeting room capacity, and no cleaning or security staff required.

[Acitta]

Restoring Local Creeks: Voisin Creek and Borden Creek

We are changing parts of Voisin Creek and Borden Creek to restore their natural flow and reduce erosion. We will also upgrade nearby trails as part of the creek restoration work.

The City of Kitchener has hired Matrix Solutions Inc., an engineering consulting firm, to restore sections of both creeks. We are designing a solution that:

Reduces future flood risks
Protects and improves water quality
Addresses erosion
Protects infrastructure near these creeks
For more information on this project, please read the project background or Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

Erosion risks
Erosion in these creeks causes pollution and puts nearby infrastructure at risk.

Voisin Creek’s banks are eroding and putting the sidewalk at risk of collapse. Retaining walls have already begun collapsing into the creek. Erosion at Borden Creek, left unchecked, could cause trees to collapse and trails to wash away. There are water mains and sanitary pipes buried along this creek. If left unmanaged, the stream could expose and damage these pipes.

[KevinL]

I lived in that neighbourhood as a kid, the spring floods would regularly cause the creek banks to shift and trails would often need rebuilding. Haven't been by in a while, but I'm not surprised this area needs work.

[neonjoe]

Just a note the Borden creek underpass under Ottawa street was either recently reconstructed or will be as part of the Ottawa st rebuild between Howland and Fischer Hallman

[KevinL]

It has not yet been reconstructed, just went over it earlier today and it's still the same old one.

[Acitta]

Notice of completion
The City of Kitchener has completed the Class Environmental Assessment to address flood risk at Schneider and Shoemaker Creeks. The recommended solution is to:

Construct naturalized channels,
Realign a section of the Iron Horse Trail, and
Include three amenity features along the trail.

[KevinT]

Thanks for the updates Gary.

Growing up in the Rockway neighbourhood and using the nasty-ish creekside backroutes to get to Cameron Heights, I find the whole idea of these becoming real creeks again pretty exciting!