Chris Lowrey
MUNICIPALITY OF PONTIAC Feb. 27, 2018
More than 75 people attended a public consultation about the location of a new boat launch in the Municipality of Pontiac.
The original boat launch located on Tremblay Road was closed in October of 2016 by the Quebec Ministry of Environment because the boat launch was made of sand and gravel, which could send excess sediment into the Ottawa River.
The consultation was held on Feb. 27 at the Luskville Community Centre.
The firm Argus Environment carried out a feasibility study examining three different locations for a boat launch location: Terry Fox Road, Sapinière Road and Tremblay Road.
The cost could range from $364,100 to $408,600 depending on which option the municipality chooses.
The locations on Terry Fox and Sapinière Roads are not feasible because they don’t meet the technical and environmental standards needed.
The only site that meets the technical and environmental standards is the location on Tremblay Road.
One of the first orders of business will be to determine a solution for the lack of parking on the North side of Tremblay Road at the boat launch.
One solution involves maintaining the status quo where vehicles park on the north side of Tremblay Road. The second option is to pave over the culvert to widen Tremblay and allow cars to park on the north side of the road. The third option is to buy a section of private property and construct a parking lot on the site.
Another main concern is providing enough room for trucks that are pulling trailers to turn around.
The turning area for launching could be near the Tourterelles Avenue and Tremblay Road junction. Once the boat is launched, trucks pulling trailers could turn around at the end of Julie Road.
The current grade of the Tremblay Road boat launch is a gradient of two to three per cent. The required slope needs to be a gradient of 12 per cent.
The cheaper option, with a price tag of $364,100, would be to allow parking on Tremblay Road. If the boat launch includes a dock, the price goes to $408,600.
An application still needs to be submitted to the province and approved, which could take around six months.
