Some Sechelt residents are pressuring council to reverse their decision to build a new sewage treatment plant on Ebbtide Street, but the deal is already signed and Mayor John Henderson said he won't change course.
"As far as the legal aspects of reconsideration, there are two methods for a council to reconsider something. One is the mayor has the authority to bring back something for reconsideration and the other, I believe, is it's two councillors and it requires a vote of council before they would consider it," Henderson said. "So I'm not going to bring it back for reconsideration. We have done an extraordinary amount of work. We have put together the best solution."
About 160 residents who questioned things like the location of the new plant and its high cost met in a citizens' forum on April 29 that was hosted by the Sunshine Coast Senior Citizens' organization and the Sechelt Sewage Coalition.
After hearing council had already signed the deal to build with Maple Reinders Inc. at the Ebbtide site (the deal was signed on Thursday, April 25), many were upset.
By the end of the meeting the large group of citizens endorsed a motion to bring forward to council asking them to reverse course and move the plant to Lot L, which "was originally envisioned by this and previous District councils," the motion stated.
Henderson was not receptive to the motion when Coast Reporter read it to him on May 1.
"The folks that have presumably drafted this resolution, obviously NIMBY is a part of it, and that's something that is tough. As a councillor and mayor we have to do what's best for all of Sechelt and sometimes certain parts of our constituency aren't as happy, but they will be and that's really the message. Everybody is going to be very happy with this when it gets open and is running," Henderson said.
Now that the contract has been signed, an opening date for the new treatment plant has been set for October of next year; however, more time can be granted if necessary.
Documents show the contract price has been stipulated at $23,851,520 including HST, but Henderson said that's an incorrect number.
"The $23.8 [million] effectively doesn't exist because of the change from HST to PST. So the number that matters is we are paying $21.296 [million] plus PST on whatever we need to pay it on," Henderson said, explaining some things won't require the tax. "So the estimate that we've been provided is that it will cost about $800,000 [for the PST] and we won't get a rebate for it."
Sechelt will pay Maple Reinders Inc. throughout the building process whenever they submit receipts to the municipality, and clauses in the contract show more money can be paid out if necessary.
"It's like anything else. If you're building a complex project there may be some savings, there may be some extras. If there are extras because of something they didn't realize, then they have to pay. If we decide to do something different, you know, to change something, then yes, we would pay for it, but we would have to authorize that change," Henderson said.
The fact that all of the contract details were hammered out behind closed doors and the seeming lack of interest from council to change course has caused the Sechelt Sewage Coalition to hire a lawyer and investigate legal ways to stop the build.
George Goudie, who leads the group, made the announcement at the citizens' forum April 29.
"All I can say to you is that we've hired a lawyer. We have a very solid case and this case is going to go to the Supreme Court of British Columbia. I wish I could tell you more," he said to applause from the crowd.
Find out more about the Sechelt Sewage Coalition on-line at www.sechelt-sewage-coalition.org.
See the newly signed design-build contract in its entirety by viewing the amended agenda for May 1 on the District of Sechelt website at www.sechelt.ca/CityHall/AgendasMinutes.aspx.
