Public Works:
Roads, Trees, Snow, Equipment and Everything Else In-Between

This is the third topic the Town of Viking would like to talk about, and it’s a big one.

We wouldn’t have a functioning Town if it wasn’t for the Public Works department, and everything they do. There’s a lot of what Public Works does on a regular basis that we all see, but there is a huge number of things that I bet you didn’t know that they do.

Did you know that each week Public Works takes water samples from the Water Tower and various other locations in Town, as our water comes from Epcor in Edmonton via a water line running alongside Highway 14. This water is sent to a lab for testing to ensure the water we receive is drinkable and safe for us to use.

Did you know that the Public Works staff operates and maintains all of the Town vehicles, which includes trucks, lawnmowers, grader, street sweeper, sanding equipment, snow removal equipment, skid steer, and much more. 

The Public Works employs 3-4 full time staff members, and in the summer months when more staff is needed summer staff are hired. Summer students are hired for the summer months to maintain the grass, water plants, including some tree trimming, and even Eastview Park Campground. These summer students’ positions are typically a student’s first job and we mentor and train new staff annually.

Our Public Works staff never complain about a dull day; they can be pulled in any direction any day. During the winter months they could be dealing with a water line break, sanding roads, and removing ice and snow, all in a day. In the summer months they are just as busy. A day in the summer could be anything from assisting a community group an event, troubleshooting lawn equipment, mowing grass, filling a pothole, checking manhole covers and digging a grave sitetarring the streets, street sweeping, watering plants, trimming trees just to name a few.

Public Works is also integral in the Viking Carena Complex keeping the ice in and maintaining all the equipment it takes to run the building. Public Works is involved with many aspects at the Carena including: Zamboni servicing, ice plant maintenance, removal and installation of the ice and the decals, the buildings heating and cooling systems, and so much more.

Public Works are such a vital resource in our community. We rely so heavily on everything we have in our Town that is done by our Public Works team. We wouldn’t have what we have without the hard work and dedication they have. So much of the work is done, you don’t see it, or even know they are doing it.

Please watch for our next post regarding how we pay for everything. We hope it helps you understand the decision-making process Viking Town Council makes for you. We encourage you to consider being part of the decision-making process by running for Viking Town Council in the next municipal elections in October 2025.

As always, we welcome your comments and feedback. You can contact any of Viking Town Council, all contact information is found on our web site at www.viking.ca, or by email at info.account@viking.ca.

Paving, Sidewalks and Curbs

This is the second topic the Town of Viking would like to talk about. This is a topic that is on our minds as much as yours.

In our first report we talked about the rough streets in Town, and this is directly tied to this next topic as well. Paving the streets we addressed to explain to you the cost to resurface and repair all the rough streets in town. Preventative maintenance is our goal to ensure we can extend the lifespan of the roads until we are able to afford to fix the sanitary system below it at the same time.

Sidewalks and curbs, just like the roads, are prioritized for repair or replacement based on their condition. The worst areas and sections are dealt with first. Each year we allocate $130,000 to sidewalk and curb repair. 

During the summer months we hire a construction company that works in many cities, towns and communities in our region to take care of this for us. They remove the broken, cracked or heaved sections, build forms, and then pour the new sidewalks and curbs.

This work is done by this company as they are experts in it, and as our Public Works staff, during these summer months are working on other maintenance projects around Town: street sweeping, painting lines, and maintaining our green spaces (this includes all Town owned properties like the ball diamonds, soccer fields, Troll Park, Eastview Park, Viking Cemetery, boulevards, and any empty residential lots,) just to name a few!

Please watch for our next post regarding Public Works and the critical role they have in our community. We encourage you to consider being part of the decision-making process by running for Viking Town Council in the next municipal elections in October 2025.

As always, we welcome your comments and feedback. You can contact any of Viking Town Council, all contact information is found on our web site at www.viking.ca, or by email at info.account@viking.ca.

Rough Streets in Town

This is the first topic the Town of Viking would like to talk about. This is a topic that is on our minds as much as yours.

First let’s talk about the current conditions of the streets. There are stretches of pavement in town where it’s in pretty good shape, close to new, and some sections that have been repeatedly patched, and some patches were gravelled at times. So why is this?

One of our biggest challenges is the infrastructure below the street that no one sees, but we rely on every day to live in our homes. The sewer lines are in very poor shape in some parts of town. 

We work closely with an Engineering company that helps us make decisions based on the conditions of the infrastructure below the street. This company looks at the camera images of each sewer line to see what’s happening. There are many reasons a line can fail, but the biggest issue seems to be frost heaving, the freeze and thaw we experience each year especially where there’s connections made. Large tree roots and the alkaline soil in our region are also factors.

Some of you might be asking, “Just pave the street, what’s the big deal?” The issue is, to just pave one block in Town, to scrape down the patched road, and then resurface it costs $220,000. Sure we can do that, but what happens when there is a major failure of the sewer line, and we have to dig up that section of street, and we already knew that it was a potential problem area and would need to be repaired based on what the engineering company told us. Now that would be a bad decision to make, knowing all the information we had at hand.

Our Public Works is continually monitoring the roads, and each year fills potholes and performs important preventative work like tarring large cracks to prevent water and ice freezing in those cracks, and then breaking up the paving when it thaws. 

Here’s some numbers to consider. As we just mentioned, to just scrape and resurface one Town block (no curbing) the cost is $220,000. To fix a failing sewer line, and repair it to last 60 years or more, then resurface the one Town block costs $500,000. What decision would you make?

The plan we have is to fix the worst and most important issues first. We also have “Emergency Fund”, we call it a “Contingency” for when we have unforeseen major failures of a sewer line or an emergency repair to a water line. We keep on budget, and on plan, so those blocks that need major work are completed first.

The Town of Viking is made up of 45 streets or blocks, approximately 25 km or 16 miles of street of those 15 percent are identified as priorities to repair for a cost of $2,500,000.

We know the streets are rough, we are doing our best to make good decisions, decisions we think you would make, if you were in the same role as we are. We are following a plan we have set out on, to keep our sewer lines working, and in the end have smoother streets to drive on. 

Our tax base is approximately 80% residential, which is a challenge for us here in Viking, as larger cities and communities rely more on their commercial tax base to fix sewer lines and streets. 

Please watch for our next post regarding how we pay for paving, sidewalks and curbs. We hope it helps you understand the decision-making process Viking Town Council makes for our community. We hope this information is informative and motivates you to be part of making these decisions with us. We encourage you to consider being part of the decision-making process by running for Viking Town Council in the next municipal elections in October 2025.

As always, we welcome your comments and feedback. You can contact any of Viking Town Council, all contact information is found on our web site, or by email at info.account@viking.ca.