Kneehill County Council held an Information and Open House Session in the Encana Rooms of the Three Hills Centennial Place Arena on March 8, to set forth some early figures for the proposed expansion of Kneehill County’s rural water system.
Six of the seven Councillors were able to attend plus CAO Mike Haugen; Director of Infrastructure Mike Ziehr, and Manager of Environmental Services, John McKiernan.
Notices of the meeting were sent out to over 200 who might have an interest in the proposal, with residents east of the Mt. Vernon Water System being the main ones concerned.
Reeve Wittstock began the session with an introduction after which John McKiernan gave a very detailed presentation, with a question period following.
It was in July of 2021 that the Council directed Administration to begin the process of gathering data as to what would be involved in an expansion and then to hold a public gathering. This was that gathering.
The number of interested parties attending this session was encouraging and the questions were well posed… and answered.
The brochure handed out has the following warning: “Please be advised that the financial information provided is preliminary and based on early construction projections. These costs are expected to increase as more detailed engineering and analysis are completed.”
A copy of the brochure that includes the “Financial Commitment”, the “Breakdown of Potential Expenses Per Connection, and an “Overview of Potential Expenses per Connection” is available online at the County’s website under: https://kneehillcounty.com/DocumentCenter/View/6344/Three-Hills-East-Water-Brochure?bidId=
A survey of the 85 residential dwelling owners is open until April 10, and a benchmark level of 80% willing to make the commitment will be necessary before any further action will be undertaken.
Based on past systems and considering expected increases in cost, it is known that the minimum connection fee of $20,000.00 per connection will be expected. A further “up-front” cost will be the construction cost for connecting “Riser to Dwelling”. Then there will be monthly fees of a fixed amount plus a fee based on usage, and then a benefitting Area Tax Levy.
If the project is deemed feasible with sufficient landowners making the commitment, it is estimated that it would be up to 5 years before the water would be delivered and “on tap”.
