Deborah Powell
LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE

BRISTOL – Marjorie Groulx-Tellier, Bristol building inspector, presented a summary of the most recent engineering report for the Norway Bay pier, April 7, at the municipality’s regular council meeting. The report was from WSP Engineering, the company mandated last fall to study the thickness of the steel on the structure, its verticality, as well as the riverbed.

Council closed the pier in March 2024 for safety reasons after receiving a report from W.F. Baird & Associates Coastal Engineers Inc., the company first engaged to study the pier in 2023. Council then accepted the recommendations of the Bristol Pier Committee, made up of elected officials and community members, to pursue the rock revetment pier stabilization option Baird proposed. The method would’ve consisted of piling rocks in a slope against the structure to protect against wear and damage from waves and ice. A geotextile membrane would have be used to contain the existing structure, preventing further leakage of the fill it contains.

However, over the summer, the Pier Committee decided to get a second opinion and, on their recommendation, council approved the WSP study. “The committee and council were relieved to find a Quebec firm interested in this project. We worked really hard to find one with the experience to handle such an undertaking,” said Councillor Valerie Twolan-Graham.

The $39,000 expense was covered by MRC Pontiac’s Regions and Rurality Fund (FRR 2) with a 20% contribution from the municipality. The Pier Committee also successfully obtained about $70,000 through the FFR 1 program for design work and project management to pursue pier revitalization.

In addition to the technical results of their study, the recent report from WSP Engineering lays out a timeline for pier repairs. In order to open this year, the sink holes on the walkway must be fixed, no heavy equipment can be allowed on that part of the pier and safety ladders must be repaired or new ones installed. It’s recommended that repairs to the actual structure be done in the next 2 to 4 years. Beyond 4 years, the structure will become unsafe, according to WSP. Of the possible solutions, WSP recommends adding a new facing of fibre reinforced plastic (FRP) panels to the existing structure, extending its life for about 30 years.

The Pier Committee will be meeting again soon to further examine the WSP report and recommendations and make quick plans to hopefully allow the pier to open this season.

Photo – The Norway Bay pier may be able to reopen this summer after council
received a second opinion on the structure’s condition. (DP)