By Ally DunhamThe Norwill Industrial Park Expansion will soon be getting a major overhaul.  LTL Contracting Limited based out of Thunder Bay, has been awarded the contract for construction of the subdivision at a price of just over $1.1 million.In August of 2009, the city received $1.47 million in funding from the Community Adjustment Fund.  This is one of the many initiatives that is part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan.  The subdivision will consist of 7 lots at approximately 2.0 hectares each for industrial development.The scope of work for this portion of the project will include water main, sewer main, land drainage system extensions, roadway excavation, subdrain installation, and granular backfill.At this time, the scope of this contract will not include pavement and curbing. Time frame on this phase of the project is a proposed start date of late July, with a completion time of approximately two months.Due to some environmental issues, including the capacity of the water sewage plant, there have been some delays on the part of the city in receiving their approvals from the Ministry of Environment to go ahead with the construction.Although Aspenware, a new manufacturing company building their plant in the Norwill Subdivision, has committed to one of the lots, Blake Poole, Manager of Capital Planning and Technology for the city of Dryden says it is not the city that is the holdup of Aspenware’s construction.“We have nothing to do with the hold- up, they can build any time they want here,” says Poole regarding Aspenware.Many meetings have taken place between Aspenware and the city of Dryden, but have all been in camera meetings so far.  Agenda topic for the in camera meetings has been listed as “Aspenware (security of the property of the corporation)”.Aspenware is to build a 50,000 square foot light manufacturing plant, and the Norwill Subdivision is the preferred location due to factors such as the company’s green philosophy, the proximity to transportation and routes, goods and service providers, central access to certified wood and solar generation.

- Ally Dunham