Dugald-Oakbank water treatment plant passes vote

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 19/02/2024 (451 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In a split 3-2 vote, RM of Springfield council voted to approve first reading of a bylaw to borrow $12.6 million for a new Dugald-Oakbank water treatment plant and other water upgrades that will be paid for by all Springfield residents and businesses.

They also passed by a 3-2 vote asking the Public Utilities Board to raise the water rates from $2.30 to $3.64 per cubic metre.

The total cost is budgeted at $29.4 million for the new plant, upgrades to the existing Dugald and Oakbank plants, two new raw water wells, pipes and other associated work. That cost includes a 20 percent contingency.

Presentations at the beginning of a public hearing ahead of Feb. 8’s late-night vote in Oakbank explained how upgrading the water system was necessary for any major future growth, including the building of a new recreation centre, homes, businesses and senior living.

The current water plants are approaching capacity after the RM grew 15 percent from 2011 to 2021 to 16,142 people. Dugald grew 59 percent to a population of 614, and Oakbank went up 45 percent to 5,041 in that time.

The new plant and upgrades would provide water for a target of 21,460 people. It would also be built in a way that would allow future expansion.

The fact that the water will only hook up to current and future residents of Oakbank and Dugald did not sit well with most of the rural residents gathered at the hearing.

Several rural residents explained how they had to pay for their own wells and did not want to have any of their taxes going towards water upgrades that they did not benefit from.

“We have a conflict between town and country. You are exacerbating it with this bylaw,” rural resident Gord Mackie told council.

He said Canada needs more houses, which the water plant would allow in Springfield, but the question was who should pay for it. Mackie foresaw dire consequences for council’s decision to “use the power of the state” to make people pay this tax.

“There’s no doubt that taxation applied that populations will not support have led to almost every revolution in history. Don’t do this. I don’t think people in Springfield will suddenly be marching with muskets on their shoulders, but I am saying that you destabilize society,” said Mackie during his submission.

He countered the argument by some urban residents that they pay for millions of dollars of rural roads and their maintenance that are only used by rural residents.

“Municipal roads are a pure public good. They’re used by the municipality, and everyone may use them. Water services are not a pure public good because not everyone may use them.

“If you want to charge me for the water [that] people in Oakbank and Dugald could use, I’m going to organize my neighbours and we’re going to go around, and we’re going to be knocking on the doors and we’re going to be going ‘Hi I’m Gord, I’m going to use your toilet now because I paid for the water. Hi, I’m still Gord. I’d like to have a long shower. I’m going to be in your bathroom from 7 to 8 in the morning,’” said Mackie.

There is a plan to have the new water treatment plant sell water to any resident wishing drive up and buy some.

Councillors Mark Miller and Andy Kuczynski voted against the borrowing bylaw and its corresponding tax, and against raising the water rate.

Miller said he would have supported a local improvement tax on Oakbank and Dugald to fund the projects.

Mayor Patrick Therrien said he will be one of those forced to move off his well and hook up to the expanded system. He told the crowd the cost needed to be shared by all because of the cost, and having growth that could help pay for more services benefits all.

“The alternative is to remain stagnant – stay as is – that is not a plan,” said Therrien to a restive crowd.

He also spoke to the benefit for firefighting.

“As a retired Mountie I have seen firsthand far too many tragedies at housefires where hydrants surely would have given a chance to save lives,” said Therrien.

And not all at the hearing were opposed, with some stressing the need to work together as one community. And while a petition of objection submitted to council had 45 signatures, a petition of support garnered 26 signatures.

At the hearing to describe the plant and other work being done in detail were Manitoba Water Services Board chief engineer Nathan Wittmeier, Friesen Drillers engineer Jeff Bell, and Associated Engineering engineer manager Ken Anderson. RM manager of water and waste Phil Pawluk and finance manager Amram Bangura also gave information and answered questions from the gallery.

Among the information shared was how less water softening with its 80 percent greensand filtration would be needed with new wells getting past the limestone layer and into the sandstone aquifer, and 20 percent of the water flow would have reverse osmosis on it.

There will be storage capacity at the new treatment plant so that the reservoirs would not need to be expanded.

Construction is planned to be completed by 2026.

The repayment schedule and special mill rate is set to last from 2025 until 2044, with $10.24 million paid in interest at an annual rate of 6.5 percent.

Money not borrowed comes from $6.237 million in municipal reserves, $4.95 million from the Manitoba Water Services Board, and $5.65 million from the provincial government. The water services board and provincial money is contingent on the project moving ahead soon, according to the board’s chief engineer Wittmeier.

The mill rate is to be set at 0.686. To figure out how much someone is paying, take the assessment minus any portioned amount not taxed (ie only 45 percent charged on the first $100,000 of residential assessed) and multiply it by the mill rate. That first $100,000 assessed would be taxed an additional $30.87 per year.

Farms pay less (26 percent portion of assessed value) and commercial and industrial pay more (portioned at 65 percent), according to RM numbers presented last Thursday.

There is also a hope that development fees that are due and any from the future will go a long way in paying for the water works.

Reports on the project and detailed descriptions are available on the RM website by going to the Feb. 8 special meeting agenda and clicking on the links.