High water levels to wreak havoc with city repairs until at least fall

It will take until fall for Lake Ontario and Hamilton Harbour water levels to return to normaland that is only if there is a dry summer ahead.

That means timelines are completely up in the air for city repairs to shoreline and waterfront trailsdamaged by this spring's record rainfalls.

Citycrews are having a challengingtime even assessing the extent of waterfront damages as the levels remain high.

We're at the mercy of Mother Nature.- KaraBunn, city manager of parks and cemeteries

While the waters are starting to recede from record levels, FrankSeglenieks, a water resources engineer with Environment Canada, told CBC News that it would take fairly dry conditions from now until the fall for things to get back to normal.

"And it would be a rare occurrence to have weather conditions to get us that low," he said.

Environment Canada sayswater levels are about 75 to 80 cm higher than the long-term average in Lake Ontario right now. They are above the highest water levels recorded at any time since 1918.

That has eaten away at the city's shoreline, and the Waterfront Trail, which sees nearly 13,000 users per week and is heading into its most popular season.

The city says that the section of the trail between Bayfront Park and Princess Point has sustained heavy damage, and many parts of it are still underwater.

Given that engineers and public works crews aren't amphibious, it's difficult to say exactly how long it's going to take to fix the damage but if crews can't even get in there, it's not going to be a quick fix.

"Until the water levels go down, we can't even assess the full levels of the damage," said Kara Bunn, city manager of parks and cemeteries.

"We're at the mercy of mother nature."

The city has already spent about $20,000 in repairs where it can, but that's only a tiny portion of what it will eventually end up spending. Public works General Manager Dan McKinnon says it will cost as much as $5 million to undo the damage.

The water levels have eroded breakwalls and washed away landscaping on the trail, as well as washing away parts of Confederation Park beach. The city will have to repair spots where asphalt is damaged, alongsidereplanting trees and restoring the shoreline.

Finding the money to fix everything won't be easy, Bunn says.

"'We're not sure yet where the funds will be coming from. We're just not budgeted for this kind of work."