Big Hole, Bigger Plans: Inside the Woodworth Pumping Station Build 🚧

Mike catches up with Pat Anckaert on site at the Woodworth Pumping Station to see how construction has progressed since our last visit, and things have changed fast. What was an empty lot in front of the building is now a massive excavation in progress, held back by a pile-and-lagging shoring system engineered specifically for this tight, space-constrained site.

Pat walks us through the internal bracing system replacing traditional tiebacks, the 20-metre steel struts keeping the walls secure, and the surprisingly delicate process of digging a hole this deep (hint: it involves a mini excavator, a big steel bucket, and a lot of chain work). We also get the full picture on why this station matters. It will service every sewer north of Highway 3, unlock future potential for Yarmouth Yards, and add capacity for St. Thomas as the city continues to grow, engineered with the next 20 to 30 years in mind.

Some fun numbers for the curious: five pumps, three at 300 horsepower and two at 100 horsepower (for reference, your pool pump is about 1 horsepower), built by local manufacturer Gorman Rupp, with a total capacity of 1,000 litres per second. That's enough to drain Pinafore Lake in a single day.

Plus, a quick look at what's coming up in St. Thomas this month:
🍻 Downtown Oktoberfest - September 19, 2 to 9:30 at Talbot & Ross, featuring the Jim Cuddy Band and a drone show
🍽️ Bridges - SBEC's celebration of local food businesses and the Small Business Awards- Get your tickets now!
🧡 Orange Shirt Day  - September 30, beginning with a flag raising at City Hall

What powers does the City of St. Thomas actually have? With a municipal election coming this fall, Mike spoke with St. Thomas City Manager Lisa Higgs to clear up a question that trips up many voters: what does the City of St. Thomas actually control, and what doesn't it?

​In Ontario, municipalities get their powers from the province under the Municipal Act. The City of St. Thomas is responsible for local roads, animal control, solid waste collection, by-law enforcement, parks and recreation, and services like Valley View Home. It is not responsible for health care, which falls under the province, or for national matters like banking, Canada Post, and defence, which are federal.
Some areas are more complicated. St. Thomas owns and operates the St. Thomas Municipal Airport, but airports are federally regulated, so the city does not set the rules that govern it. Roads around St. Thomas are also split between multiple authorities: city streets fall under the municipality, Highway 3 is a provincial highway, and roads like Sunset Drive, Highbury Avenue, and Wonderland Road fall under Elgin County or neighbouring municipalities such as Central Elgin and Southwold.
This conversation is a practical guide for St. Thomas and Elgin County residents heading into election season, clarifying what city council candidates can and cannot promise to change.
Topics covered:

• How Canadian constitutional federalism divides power between federal, provincial, and municipal governments
• What the Ontario Municipal Act allows cities to control
• Why health care is a provincial responsibility, not a municipal one
• How airport operations work under federal regulation
• Which authority controls which roads in and around St. Thomas

Learn more about the election and register to vote!

A growing community needs many things to stay healthy, including healthcare professionals like doctors and nurse practitioners. So how does a mid-sized community like ours work to build a strong healthcare system?

In St. Thomas and Elgin County, it starts with the Health Recruitment Partnership, a joint city-county initiative that has helped recruit and retain more than 50 physicians and nurse practitioners since 2008.

In this update, Mike from St. Thomas Economic Development connects with City of St. Thomas Strategic Initiatives Manager Taylor Mooney and Health Recruiter Uzo Ajogwu to break down how the partnership works and why it is getting results.

Taylor explains the governance behind the HRP, a collaboration between the City of St. Thomas, the County of Elgin, St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital, and local physicians.

Uzo shares about the recruitment toolkit that is setting St. Thomas apart from neighbouring communities, including a $33,000 incentive for physicians taking over or starting a practice, home builder partnerships offering move-in support, and a low-interest loan of up to $300,000 through the Elgin Business Resource Centre. She also shares this year's recruitment numbers and what makes St. Thomas and Elgin County an easy sell to physicians considering the move, from quality of life to proximity to Toronto and Detroit.

If you are a physician, nurse practitioner, or healthcare professional exploring where to build your practice, this is your look inside the community and the incentives behind it.

Learn more about the Health Recruitment Partnership and available incentives: ​

What's actually being built at Yarmouth Yards this summer?

Mike Kerkvliet from St. Thomas EDC caught up with City of St. Thomas Industrial Development Project Manager Michael Brix on-site at the Yarmouth Yards Industrial Park to get a straight answer to that question. Four active construction projects are underway, and in this video, Michael breaks down exactly what each one involves.

Phase 3 earthworks and servicing, led by J-AAR, has been running since 2025. It covers the large-diameter storm and sanitary sewers, water mains, stormwater ponds, and new roads on the east and south ends of the site. Phase 4, being handled by Amico, is smaller in scope but brings a couple of notable additions: a pedestrian bridge over Technology Trail and a tunnel under the rail spur, which together link both sides of the site for cyclists and pedestrians.

There's also a new gateway sign going in just off Highbury Avenue, south of Ron McNeil Line. More on this one soon!

Down in the southeast corner, Birnam Excavating is building the Yarmouth Sewage Pumping Station, which collects sewage via gravity from the east and south portions of the site and pumps it back up to connect with the newer infrastructure.

Rounding things out, the Rail Shunting Yard Project is in its second phase. The CN Rail spur line and the bridge over Technology Trail are already done. Now Amico is finishing the shunting yard beside the PowerCo property. When that's complete, there's a golden spike waiting to be driven. It's been waiting a while. Apparently, there's precedent for not rushing it.
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​All four projects are scheduled to wrap up by the end of 2026.