A ditch filled in by a property owner in Richmond has been reconstructed by the city – the originally estimated cost was $58,400.
The City of Richmond couldn’t, however, disclose the final bill because it was a “matter between the property owner and the city,” explained city spokesperson Clay Adams.
The property owners at 13740 Westminster Hwy., just off No. 6 Road, had filled in the ditch in front of their home and built a decorative wall over it.
The ditch, however, is part of the riparian management area and the work was causing flooding in the area, according to the city.
The property owners appealed to Richmond city council, saying the ditch was unsafe and they had had an engineer do the work, filling it in, building the wall and leaving a pipe for water to flow underneath.
The city, however, said the pipe was “substandard.”
The watercourse is part of the 320-kilometre network of ditches and canals throughout the city, protected as part of the Riparian Management Area (RMA).
Minor watercourses, like the ditch in front of this property, have a protected setback of five metres on each side.
Council voted unanimously in October to order it repaired, or have the city repair it and bill the owners.
The property owners were fined $8,500 leading up to the order to rebuild the ditch.
