FAQs

The City of Cambridge is proposing to reconstruct Bruce Street from Harris Street to Main Street and Spruce Street from Bruce Street to Main Street.

Reconstruction will include:

• Replacement of the existing watermain, appurtenances and services to property line
• Replacement of the existing sanitary sewer, appurtenances and services to property line
• Replacement of the existing storm sewer and appurtenances
• Replacement of the existing roadway, curb and gutter and sidewalk

Bruce Street from Harris Street to Main Street

Yes. The complete roadway including curbs and sidewalks will be reconstructed. The width of existing asphalt surface is approximately 7.6m to 8.2m between Harris Street and Main Street. The width of existing sidewalk on both sides of the road is approximately 1.2m. 

The width of proposed sidewalk on both sides of road will be increased to 1.5m as per the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). A 0.5m wide grass boulevard between concrete curb and sidewalk is proposed. The sidewalk widening will be mainly toward the road where possible (sidewalk will be widened toward the property line by not more than 0.3m in some areas).

The proposed roadway will be 8.0m to meet the City’s standard. 

The retaining wall at 6 McKenzie Street will be reconstructed. The tree and bush behind the retaining wall need to be removed in order to reconstruct the retaining wall.

Spruce Street from Bruce Street to Main Street

Yes. The complete roadway including curbs and sidewalks will be reconstructed. The width of existing asphalt surface is approximately 8.8m from Bruce Street to Main Street. The width of existing sidewalks on both sides of the road is approximately 1.3m. 

The width of proposed sidewalk on both sides of the road will be increased to 1.5m as per the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). A 0.5m wide grass boulevard between concrete curb and sidewalk is proposed on west side of the road. The sidewalk widening will be mainly toward the road.

The proposed roadway will be 8.0m to meet the City’s standard.

 The City of Cambridge upgrades infrastructure each year in order that aged facilities are replaced prior to there being a complete failure or the cost of maintenance becomes exorbitant. 

The existing watermain, storm sewers and sanitary sewers will be replaced due to age and deterioration. All service laterals will be replaced to the property line.  Reconstruction of the road and concrete surface works is necessary due to deterioration and reconstruction of the underground services. 

All water service laterals for single families will be replaced with 25mm diameter polyethylene pipe from the watermain to property line and all sanitary service laterals will be replaced with 100mm diameter PVC pipe from the sewer main to property line.

Any property owner wishing to have new (additional) or larger sized services must make written application to the City of Cambridge.  Any new or upgrade service will be at the expense of the property owner making the request.  Should you require a new or upgraded service, please contact Steven Huang of the Development and Infrastructure Department at 519-623-1340 ext. 4616 so that your requirements can be incorporated as part of the construction.

Please note that the service installed would be to the property line only. Any work on private property would be the responsibility of the property owner who must obtain a permit under the Plumbing Code from the City’s Building Department.

Construction is expected to take place in 2025 subject to budget approval.

A private contractor selected through the City’s public tender process will undertake the work.  

During road reconstruction, it will be necessary to close the road to through traffic.  Access to private property may be possible, but it will be at your own risk, as you will be traveling through a construction zone.  For times you do not have access to your property, or if you do not wish to travel through the construction zone, alternate arrangements should be made for parking.  

Overnight parking will be permitted on intersecting streets within one block of the reconstruction but you must abide by all other existing parking restrictions (i.e. don’t block a driveway, don’t park too close to a fire hydrant, don’t park where parking is prohibited, etc.).

To minimize disruption to pedestrians, the construction crew will:

• Maintain the existing sidewalk until it’s removal is absolutely necessary;
• Provide a temporary gravel sidewalk between removal of the old and placement of the new sidewalk;
• Whenever possible, provide advanced notice to the property owners and residents whose sidewalk or driveway will be temporarily affected

Sewer and water service will be maintained throughout the duration of construction. However, short interruptions can be expected, particularly when the services to individual properties are transferred from existing mains to the new mains.  In the majority of cases, interruptions will be limited to a few hours and will occur during normal working hours.  

Advance notification will be provided where possible prior to any planned service interruption. During watermain reconstruction, a temporary above ground watermain may be installed. Each property will be connected from the temporary main to an outside water tap.   Access onto your property will be required to provide the temporary connection.

One issue of critical importance to the City of Cambridge is to have the work completed while minimizing disruption to the neighbourhood. Road reconstruction and underground servicing is disruptive and at times will create noise, vibration due to compaction and a potential for dust. To address these disruptions, water and calcium chloride are used for dust control and construction activity is limited to daylight hours after 7:00 a.m. 

On some reconstruction projects we find that residents have constructed gardens, shrubs, hedges, and fences within the City road allowance. If existing services are below that particular feature, there is a grade change or if the location of the sidewalk changes, you will be asked to relocate the garden, hedge etc onto your property prior to construction taking place. 

When reconstructing the sidewalk, it may be necessary to cut back some driveways to match the new grade. If this is the case, the driveway will be saw-cut and a patch placed using the same material if possible. Impressed or coloured concrete driveways cannot be replaced to match the original, which is also the case with paving stone driveways (unless the owner has a supply of matching stones that the contractor could use). 

If you have a sprinkler system installed along the edge of the roadway or sidewalk within the City’s road allowance, please remove the piping prior to construction as the contractor will not be responsible for damage and the City will not replace it. You may have it reinstalled on private property after construction is completed if you wish.

Blue box, green box and refuse collection will be maintained throughout the duration of construction. When access is restricted by construction operations, the construction crew will place the blue boxes and refuse containers at a location accessible by the collection service on collection days. To minimize problems during construction, it would be appreciated if all refuse is bagged – Yard Waste in paper bags, Household Garbage in plastic bags.  Please ensure that your address is clearly marked on containers/ blue boxes.

The City of Cambridge recognizes that reconstruction will cause inconvenience to the residents and businesses in the area and requests your cooperation, understanding and patience throughout its duration. Comments can be provided to the City through the survey on the bottom of this project page. 

In addition to your comments, other information we would like to receive from residents or institutions are your special needs, e.g. for persons with disabilities, water or sewer service improvements or driveway modifications. This written record will assist the City to address all the issues related to the reconstruction.