Received email update from Suzanne Oel
“Good Afternoon Michael, Doug, Bob, Michael & Harry,
Since our February 9th 2016 meeting discussions about the waterline project, I’ve had a chance to clarify a few items, with Harry’s input. Harry please comment if there is anything to add or correct:
. Next Steps Process: Draft Engineering Report (currently under way) – Draft Engineering Report to Local Improvement Petitioners for comments – if Petitioners are OK with costs goes to finalized Report and Local Improvement
Plan – to Council – to Tender (all inclusive) – review by Public Works – Notice to Petitioners with summary of the Local Improvement Plan – 30 days for Petitioners to accept or reject – if accepted goes to Council for motion to go ahead, accept bid and create Local Improvement Bylaw…
. Draft Engineering Report: Public Works will look at it when it comes in, to make sure nothing is missing, etc. Next, we will meet with you and Local Improvement Petitioners to review the draft and get your comments. The draft report may include a couple of routes with a couple of sizes. 2” Ø is the oversize waterline measurement. We will let you know as soon as we have something.
. MD owns the pipeline, maintenance is paid for by the MD. If the pipeline is upgraded later after the Local Improvement, new players pay to tie-in. If an extensive group is interested to tie-in, then a new plan would be needed for their part, any changes to the existing set-up, and they pay.
. M.D. of Foothills owns the oversizing. The Municipal Government Act allows us to do the oversizing, but is a decision of Council. If landowners tie-in along the route in the future (not part of the LIP), then each of the initial contributing landowners would get a credit (if still paying) or a cheque (if already fully paid out). Those who join later (on the route) would pay their hookup fee to FCR ($30k), their share of the oversizing to the MD, and water-use rates to the MD, with no discount hook-up rate and no loan over time from the MD. “Endeavour to Assist” may be set up as the technical means to organize tie-ins along the route after the Local Improvement Bylaw is set.
. Landowners can tell us where the tie-in is best at their property.
. Hook-up to the waterline is for each “existing” property title. In fairness, we have looked at serving each existing landowner with one hook-up to the system, as we do not have an extensive water licence, etc.
. Additional landowners can sign onto the Local Improvement Petition up to the first reading of the Local Improvement Bylaw. If someone else would like to sign onto the existing Local Improvement Petition, they can sign on the form that is currently at the MD of Foothill’s office, have it witnessed there and then this would go to Council to accept the new landowner.
. On your own property, your hook-up to your house is your own project, but you must have a meter with remote read-out. Perhaps neighbours can work together on this to find efficiencies.
. Just to confirm that the water licences currently used for FCR are appurtenant to the area and therefore would not transfer to other interested communities. As mentioned, first in time – first in right applies. The Bulk-Fill Station may be shut down as the licenced-use gets tapped out with demand. However, since the most demand for the Bulk-Fill is in the summer, there may be a possibility of using it if a temporary water licence could be obtained for seasonal use. In a drought or over-use situation, the water licence users would go to a Drought Management Plan.
. A new Road Study is going ahead concurrently (368 St. W & 1368 Dr. W, small portion or 194 Ave. W): On 2016.02.17, Council approved going ahead with an engineering assessment of the road to help us plan and include costs for the waterline project, should we encounter rock or other issues before laying the pipeline, and to determine if the pipeline works in the ROW, on which side the line best works, or if the under-the-road scenario would be considered. Also, we will be able to look at the cost of improving the road. The cost of this study comes from our budget, not the Local Improvement project.
We’ll be in touch soon.
Best Regards,
Suzanne Oel
Councillor, Div. 4
M.D. of Foothills
West Foothills Water North Project 