A partial collapse of an excavation site between 56th Avenue and Michaud Crescent in Langley City has closed off a community garden to its users.
The collapse took place over the weekend of April 2 and 3, on the south side of the site in the 20200 block of 56th Avenue, and by Monday morning multiple excavators were at work in the large pit, where a retaining wall had visibly slumped and partially collapsed.
“The City was notified Sunday of a shoring collapse in the development north of the Michaud Gardens site,” said Rick Bomhof, director of engineering, parks, and environment for Langley City.
“At this point it appears that none of the gardens have been impacted, however for the safety of gardeners, and out of an abundance of caution, the Michaud Community Garden will be closed until further notice,” Bomhof said. “A geotechnical investigation is underway to indicate why this happened, how it will be prevented going forward and an action plan to repair the collapse. We are hopeful that repairs can be done before the end of April so the gardening season is not lost.
The construction site is the former site of the West Country Hotel.
The hotel was demolished last year to make way for a six-storey, 213-unit rental building.
It was also intended to help expand the Michaud Community Garden.
However, as of Monday morning, that garden is closed off with red caution tape and warning signs.
The Langley Advance Times has reached out to developer Pennyfarthing Homes for more information about the cause of the collapse.
READ ALSO: Langley City’s West Country Hotel is demolished
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