COQUITLAM, B.C., December 2, 2023 – Following the statements issued on November 30 and December 1, the City of Coquitlam is providing an update on the geotechnical issue at the Amacon Construction Ltd. development site at 500 Foster Avenue in Coquitlam.
Overnight Coquitlam Public Works crews were called to the site to address water leaks caused by the repair work. Crews were able to quickly isolate the leaks and close the appropriate valves to stop further water ingress. City workers continue to monitor the situation, which is also being assessed by a professional engineer and geotechnical expert.
Fill is being added to the excavation site to ensure continued stability and enable the shoring wall repair, which has caused shifting of the surrounding soil. Residents in the area may notice changes to the scaffolding on site, which is not part of shoring wall. The site remains safe and active, and work will continue overnight.
Neighbourhood Impacts
Consistent with Coquitlam’s Good Neighbour Construction Policy, Amacon has been in communication with neighbouring property management companies. In this incident, that includes ensuring that neighbouring residents are aware of the situation including the extended work hours and anticipated noise impacts related to the remediation work.
As this is an evolving situation of interest to the broader community, the City will also continue to provide updates related to traffic and the City’s role in this matter. Updates will be posted to coquitlam.ca/FosterAvenue as new information is received.
Coquitlam joins Amacon Construction Ltd. in apologizing to neighbours for these inconveniences and appreciate the ongoing patience as we work together to resolve this.
Neighbouring residents can reach out to foster@amacon.com for further information updates.
Traffic Update
Foster Avenue remains closed between North Road and Whiting Way to all vehicle traffic in order to ensure site and public safety. Pedestrians have access along the north side of Foster Avenue. Bus Route 157 has been temporarily rerouted via Robinson Street and Smith Avenue.
Ongoing road closures will be in effect until remediation is complete to ensure the integrity of surrounding infrastructure and roadways.
Background
In the early evening of Wednesday, November 29, staff were made aware that the shoring wall (i.e. the temporary wall that supports a construction site during excavation) on the north end of the site had started to fail.
Foster Avenue was closed and work began immediately to fix the shoring wall to ensure no further failures.
WorkSafe BC also attended the site to inspect the incident, and provided instruction for the safe operation of the site. They have allowed work on the site to continue under the supervision of the site’s geotechnical engineer in order to stabilize the wall.
At this time, no one has been injured and there has been no known damage to City roads or underground infrastructure. Repairs to the shoring wall are being supervised by the developer’s professional geotechnical engineer, and they are completing inspections of the rest of the shoring walls. It is not expected that there is any risk to infrastructure or buildings beyond the immediate area of failure.
It is important to note that a shoring wall is a temporary wall installed during excavation and is not the permanent foundation wall for the building, which would be subject to the BC Building Code and City oversight. The BC Building Code does not govern the shoring system. This is within the mandate of the site’s geotechnical engineers who have their own high standards and codes of ethics to ensure safety in these situations.
As an added precaution on this building site, the City of Coquitlam has taken the extra step of requiring the developer to hire a third-party geotechnical engineer to provide oversight of the remediation work. While this is not standard practice, City officials felt it was important to ensure there was additional oversight and trust for the protection of City infrastructure as well as the surrounding neighbourhood.
Residents with questions and concerns related to this development project can contact the City’s Planning and Development team at 604-927-3430 or devinfo@coquitlam.ca. After-hours concerns can be directed to the City’s 24/7 Engineering and Public Works customer service at 604-927-3500 or epw@coquitlam.ca.
Media Contact
Doug Vance
Building Permits Manager
media@coquitlam.ca
We acknowledge with gratitude and respect that the name Coquitlam was derived from the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ (HUN-kuh-MEE-num) word kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (kwee-KWET-lum) meaning “Red Fish Up the River”. The City is honoured to be located on the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm traditional and ancestral lands, including those parts that were historically shared with the q̓ic̓əy̓ (kat-zee), and other Coast Salish Peoples.