Approval process set for $5.5M line
People should look beyond the $20,000 cost of hooking up to a proposed sewer extension to the Deer Ridge neighbourhood of Summerland and see the potential it has to also unlock additional land for housing, says a local politician.
Construction of the Deer Ridge sewer extension to 112 lots in the community’s northeast corner is tentatively set to get underway this fall with completion some time in 2025.
A gravity-fed line would run from the top of Deer Ridge, down through the planned Eco-Village site, along Taylor Place to Cartwright Avenue, where it would tie into an existing sewer main.
But first it requires the blessing of the property owners who would tie into it, under a process that was initiated by a unanimous vote of council Tuesday.
The owners will be asked beginning later this month if they want to create a new local area service to operate the sewer line and authorize the District of Summerland to borrow up to $2.2 million to build it.
Under that reverse-approval process, the owners of the 112 lots in the proposed service area will have up to 30 days beginning April 19 to petition against it. Should 50% of owners representing 50% of total assessed value sign a petition, the project would die.
If the project is cleared to proceed, each of the 112 lots would be assessed a $19,866 fee, payable over 20 years, to cover the $2.2 million. The district estimates that would cost the average property owner $1,600 per year for 20 years. Owners would also have the option to pay the fee outright.
The project is budgeted at $5.5 million, up from an estimate of $4.2 million as of July 2023 due mainly to rising costs for materials and labour.
A developer has already provided $1.5 million up-front to the district, while the remaining $1.8 million will come from the district’s share of the Growing Communities Fund and attributed to the Eco-Village project, which would be on the new sewer line.
District staff is still exploring the idea of allowing latecomers onto the system, which would lower costs for everyone else.
Council also ordered staff to explore relaxing an existing bylaw that would require Deer Ridge owners to hook up to the new sewer lines within 60 days of completion, due in part to concerns about the financial costs of moving away from septic systems and the availability of local contractors to do all the work within that window of time.
Those issues and more are tentatively set to be discussed at a public meeting to be scheduled before the 30-day reverse-approval process ends in May.
The meeting was urged by Coun. Marty Van Alphen to help the 112 affected property owners get over their sticker shock.
“I think we’re missing the benefits here. No. 1 is the sewer. No. 2 is possible rezoning of their properties. A lot of these properties are quite large. They’ll probably be able to accommodate a carriage house or a secondary suite once the sewer goes in. Today, they can’t because they’re on septic,” said Van Alphen.
“Basically, what we’re doing is saying: ‘It’s going to cost you $19,000 or X amount of dollars per year. Are you in or are you out? I’d like to talk about the positives, too.”