Sechelt council has approved two last-minute additions to the district’s capital spending plan to take advantage of work that’s already underway.
The projects were presented to council May 6, the same night the 2020 budget was presented.
One was $97,500 to replace a valve cluster on the pipes under Ebbtide Street and install two dry reclaimed water force mains crossing Ebbtide “for future use to service East Porpoise Bay, Blue Ocean Golf Course, Lehigh Gravel Pit, and for other water uses.”
The costliest part of the work is the valve cluster replacement, estimated at about $65,000.
The money would come from the sewer capital reserve and the work is to be completed in tandem with ongoing roadwork on Ebbtide.
Mayor Darnelda Siegers said it makes sense to do the work now and save the extra cost that might be involved in doing it later when the road will have to be dug up again.
“We are going to try to use, at some point, reclaimed water for watering Hackett Park, for example… During the summer if we have a dry summer we need to still maintain our fields. This would help us do that with Hackett,” Siegers said.
Coun. Alton Toth said he supported the concept, but raised concerns about the need to start laying pipe for a reclaimed water system that doesn’t yet have confirmed users.
“Do we have any signed agreements in place, or do we just have [a situation in which] they could want it until it’s going to cost them $2 million and then they don’t want it anymore?” Toth asked, adding that the district still doesn’t know what would ultimately be involved in running a reclaimed water system. “I don’t feel it’s an appropriate move forward at this time.”
“There’s lots of things that we don’t know,” responded Coun. Brenda Rowe. “But one thing that we do know is that we’d have to rip up the brand new pavement if we wanted to do this [later]. I think it’s prudent, I think it’s an investment, even it if ultimately only serves our own needs around Hackett.”
The other project approved by council to take advantage of road work currently underway was the installation of a sewer main along Trail Avenue, from Dolphin Street to Pebble Crescent to support future Selma Park, Davis Bay, and Wilson Creek Sewer expansion.
The cost is estimated at $200,000 to be covered through development cost charges of $198,000 with the remaining $2,000 to come from sewer reserves.
Neither project will have an impact on 2020 property taxes.
