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7 | Friday, M ay 5 , 2 0 1 7 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | w w w .insideH A LT O N .com Letter to the Editor Berm `rocks' Oakville community Residents in the quiet northeast Oakville neighborhood of Pondview Place and Ravineview Way dodged showers this week to meet on the rock berm that has become a ` blot on the local landscape'. The Pondview Pond was dredged early in 2017 to remove sediment accumulated over the past 10 years. Ninety-six truckloads of sediment, soil and ice were hauled away. The pond is a wet storm water management facility with two inflow pipes and a bottom draw outlet. According to the Town of Oakville the pond ` short circuits,' meaning rain water flowing in to the pond directly outlets without receiving the available treatment. Residents find that hard to believe, having watched the water level rise to the maximum capacity of the pond on four occasions this year, before slowly draining in to the creek over a 48 hour period. The retrofit work to the pond involved the construction of a 45 meter long, 5 meter wide rock berm to double the flow path distance between inlet and outlet. I believe a 50 per cent increase is more realistic and less when the berm is totally submerged. Residents could not understand why the berm had to be so wide, until Council declared that it would serve as a vehicle ramp when the pond is next dredged, which could be 2027! The community has met with Ward 6 Councillors Tom Adams and Natalia Lishchyna and the Towns Engineering Department twice. They voiced their concerns about safety, unruly behaviour in the form of rock hurling, alternative solutions to the berm and the lack of consideration for the aesthetics of the natural environment. A third meeting is set for May 9. The Town has committed to landscape the area with grasses and shrubs, to soften the appearance of the berm and stop people walking out to the middle of the pond. Residents are skeptical plants will survive being frequently submerged and then trampled underfoot. Whether it' s a berm or an access ramp is irrelevant. To the local community it' s just downright ugly and not what we come to expect in livable Oakville. Oakville residents are concerned over a rock berm recently installed at Ponview Pond. | submitted photo Mike Turner, Oakville w w w .j w a r c h it e c t .c o m ^ S O O N T O R N A H N T H A I HOUSES OUR FIRST PASSION N ew ·A d d itio n s · C ottages · Interiors · Landscape Soontorn Bahn Thai is the premium thai restaurant in downtown Oakville specializing in Royal Thai cuisine with fresh ingredient from Thailand. It is extremely beautifully decorated to enhance the thai tropical effect and the romantic atmosphere. 210 Lakeshore Road East, Oakville · 9 0 5 -8 1 5 -8 4 Monday - Thursday 11:00; Friday 11:00-11:00; Saturday 12:00-11:00; Sunday 12:00-9:30 BAHN TH A I MOR F I J I 'S WWW.BAHNTHAIGROUP.COM G u a r d ia n p h a rm a c y All Oakville/Burlington, Locations inside Longo's Stores S p e c ia lty C o m p o u n d in g a v a ila b le a t all lo c a tio n s W e M a k e Transferring Your Prescriptions Easy. Fast Friendly Professional Service You can Trust Mother's Day Special $5 O FF Y o u r N e x t P u rc h a s e o f $ 5 0 o r m o re . OR $15 O FF Y o u r N e x t P u rc h a s e o f $ 1 0 0 o r m o re . *B urlington location only. Offer not valid on previous purchases, optics, gift cards, or DSC memberships. Please present ad to redeem. Limited one discount p e rfa m i l 3350 F A I R V I E W S T R E E T , B U R L I N G T O N 905-634-7700 · E M A I L : wbu1@bellnet.ca W E B R iN G PEO PLE & N A T U R E T O G E TH E R