Mountain View County council has deferred second reading of a proposed new bylaw identifying terms and conditions for the supply of water and wastewater services in the municipality.
During the recent regularly scheduled council meeting, councillors instructed administration to bring back answers to a number of questions recently raised about the bylaw.
Those questions were posed in a letter received from Prodev Limited Partnership, which owns the Netook Crossing Business Park (NCBP) east of Olds, following first reading of the bylaw on June 26.
Bylaw 21/12 incorporates both water and wastewater services into one bylaw, which has been in the works since February 2012.
The bylaw includes general conditions, definitions, connections conditions, connections for new developments, service and servicing conditions, restrictions/prohibitions and interruptions of service, and releases from the sewer system.
Section 5 of the bylaw deals with new developments. Conditions under that section include the following:
• A person developing a property who wishes to receive utility services shall pay to the county a construction water use fee and a water meter installation fee as set out in the fee schedule bylaw. Payment of these fees shall be made at the time of application for the required building permit, and the county may require construction water uses to be metered.
• A person who wishes to connect any piping to the county utility system must apply to the county for approval. Such an application must include construction drawings identifying the proposed connection, associated piping, fittings and installations, and any other information required by or set out in the engineering standards.
• A person developing a property requiring connection to the utility services shall provide and install all necessary wiring for the installation of a meter and a remote reader in locations that provide unobstructed access to designated county employees for the purpose of the installation, removal, inspection, repair, monitoring and checking (of the equipment).
In a letter to council, Prodev Limited Partnership said it has questions that “relate primarily to the application of the bylaw to our NCBP development.”
One question states: “Will the system user be given the opportunity to review the proposed fee structure for system operations? Typically fees should be limited to operation, maintenance and administration of the system. Are any other charges contemplated?”
Another question states: “Are there any other developments in MVC other than NCBP where the bylaw will be currently applicable? It would appear that the bylaw will only currently apply to the wastewater collection system at NCBP.”
Another question states: “We understand that MVC's current capital budget is approximately $20 million of which $11.5 million is provided by way of grants. If MVC initiates a capital program for connection to regional water and sewer systems is any grant availability contemplated?”
The bylaw will come back before council on Aug. 28. Anyone wanting to make comment on the new bylaw can do so by contacting MVC director of legislative services Jeff Holes at the county office by Aug. 16.
