A bylaw amendment allowing council more leeway in funding costs associated with the Snug Cove Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) continues on the way toward adoption.
The establishment bylaw currently reads: “The method of cost recovery for the service shall be by user fees, and parcel taxes as defined by bylaw, to be recovered solely from the properties included in the area…”
But in January this year, council approved $1.6 million in municipal general funds to pay for Phase 1 upgrades at the WWTP. Chief financial officer Kristen Watson pointed out last week this decision didn’t match up with the ‘solely’ part of the bylaw.
“To remedy the situation I’m recommending the deletion of the word solely, and the addition of a clause that will permit council to collect from property owners that reside outside of the Snug Cove sewer district,” said Watson at the March 28 council meeting.
The wording change would line up with the current funding plan, which places the bulk of upgrade costs on people living outside the Snug Cove local service area. They’ll be responsible for $921,323, about 56 per cent, of the total.
Prior to last week the entire total was being split island-wide, but after a re-examination Snug Cove property owners are now responsible for $718,677 through a combination of parcel taxes and user fees.
Watson says in addition to deleting the word ‘solely’, she’d like council to pass a resolution that any future use of general funds for a local service area project be declared “of island-wide significance” before approval, allowing for expanded committee consultation and public input.
The potential changes were sent to the Snug Cove Sewer System Local Advisory Committee (SCSS) and Finance Advisory Committee (FAC) for input. The former met March 31, where Watson said the amendments – particularly around the use of general funds for local projects – would “create that message to the community that this project is of extreme importance that needs to be funded from monies outside of the Snug Cove sewer district. I’m looking for that clause to… increase the level of transparency for any transfers between funds.”
The suggestions were supported by SCSS chair Glenn Cormier.
“I do believe for the most part, the Snug Cove local area should be treated as a local area, and it should be a user pay system. But I do believe there are circumstances such as this that need to be considered,” said Cormier.
“That would be my rationale behind having at least an option for council to make a different choice. I think Snug Cove should be recognized, to a certain degree, as an area that the island as a whole benefits from,” he continued.
Committee member David Bellringer agreed, approving the recommendations in a 2-1 vote with Coun. Alison Morse in dissent.
Morse says “We’ve got financial policies, and we discussed them very clearly that the utilities would pay their own way. And I quite agree with that.”
The bylaw amendments will next be discussed at the FAC meeting April 7, before returning to a future council meeting.
