YORKTON – Yorkton's YDB Scoops is set to open for its 18th season March 26, despite a scheduled environmental cleanup at the site of the 117-year-old building.
Nicole Roy, the owner of YDB Scoops, explained that changes to environmental laws by the provincial government have prompted the cleanup of abandoned tanks across the province.
"A little while ago the Sask government made some changes to environmental laws that had to deal with the cleaning up of abandoned tanks around the province," said Roy in an interview with Â鶹ÊÓƵ.ca
The building, which served as a petroleum station for many decades, had its last connection to Shell, the company that has stepped up to handle the cleanup.
"Shell is the last existing company that had anything to do with the store being a gas station. They stepped up and have taken responsibility for the cleanup," said Roy.
The shop's cleanup was expedited when city workers, installing new street lights, experienced a minor explosion when drilling back in August.
"We're not sure what they hit—we're pretty sure we saw a pipe. They might have hit a vent pipe," Roy recounted.
"It caused a couple of minor explosions so we got moved to the top of the list for dealing with the cleanup," added Roy.
Roy said Shell has been working closely with YDB Scoops to ensure minimal disruption to the business.
"They've been very very good with that," said Roy.
In September of last year, ground-penetrating radar revealed two underground tanks, one of which had been abandoned due to leakage.
"We've discovered that there are two tanks underground. Apparently one of them had been abandoned because it was leaking," said Roy.
The tanks are scheduled for removal, and the site will be restored to its original condition before the store's 2025 season.
Starting Feb. 24, a site inspection will kick off the cleanup, which includes removing the deck and awning at the front of the building.
"Everything at the front of the building is going to have to go. The tanks are under the deck basically," Roy explained. Reconstruction of the deck and overhang is slated for the beginning of March.
Despite the challenges, Roy remains optimistic about the upcoming season.
"Shell and their subsidiary Stantec have been great to work with. They've been very accommodating—very open. There's been zero problems so far working with them. They've been very willing to work around what I have going on," said Roy.
"We do have every intention of opening at the end of March and we're just hoping everything goes well with the removal of the tanks and that everything gets put back together properly," added Roy.
A City of Yorkton official confirmed with Â鶹ÊÓƵ.ca that a lane closure on Myrtle Avenue is expected for the use of a hydro-vac truck during the removal, with signage in place to identify the construction area. The closure is expected to last several days.
