The clank of metal on metal echoes throughout southern Pitt Meadows, all day long, and has since the beginning of June.
It originates from a piece of machinery on Airport Way, beside the City Works Yard, on land being developed by Onni for an industrial park. And it can be heard clearly as far away as city hall. The pile-driver sounds, created by a compactor, start at 8 a.m. and go until 5 p.m.
“It’s just bang, bang. It rattles across from north Bonson up to the highway,” asserts Dave Douglas, who lives near the Corner of Baynes Road and Airport Way.
“The issue is qualify of life. They need to give some consideration to the people who live here,” Douglas adds.
“It’s ridiculous,” said Rob Olson, who lives on 117A. “You’re sitting out having a beer, and all you hear is clank, clank, clank.”
Residents have been told the work will continue through September.
For people who live closer, or those on Fieldstone and Streamstone walks, with no subdivisions between them and the compactor, the waves of sound hit loudest.
Douglas said there was a lot of pile driving when the Golden Ears Bridge was built, but a barrier was erected to divert the sound away from residents.
“There was a little consideration for the people.”
He said the contractors could pressure-load the site, hauling fill there and allowing it to compact the soil.
City councillors have heard the complaints, and there has been some curbing of the compacting.
It used to begin each morning at 7 a.m. The compacting was done on Saturdays, but that too has been curtailed, because of residents’ concerns.
According to Onni infrastructure manager Curt Gowler, the work is almost done.
“We’re nearing the end of it,” said Gowler. “We’re way ahead of schedule, thanks to this weather.”
He estimates that the work will be done by the end of July. The original company estimate was that it would take until the end of August, and the company’s conservative timeline said the end of September, in order to account for any delays.
The Rapid Impact Compaction was the way to go for this job, Gowler asserts, because the residents would have been no happier with truck traffic hauling the massive amounts of soil that would have been necessary to pressure load the site.
He is apologetic to residents, and acknowledges “it’s definitely very loud.”
But he said the work will be good for Pitt Meadows. The company is building a business park much like its facilities on the south side of Airport Way. Tenants are already booked.
“There’ll be lots of job opportunities.”