LANCASTER – South Glengarry council has endorsed a $60 million plan to expand water and sewage treatment capacity in the greater Glen Walter area.
An almost two year study with public consultation came to a close Monday night as council passed the Glen Walter Area Water and Wastewater Master Servicing Plan.
The first step will be getting an environmental assessment for the expansion, which is expected to cost between $100,000 and $150,000.
The plan would allow water and sewer capacity for infilling lots in the Glen Walter core area, Farlinger Point, Place St. Laurent and Country Club Estates.
It would also allow for the longer term expansion over three decades for land west of Farlinger Point and the land north of Page and Riverview Drive, northeast of the Islamic Institute.
Pushing out the service boundaries and infilling will increase the service area from 1,000 people to 3,000 by 2051, and has been calculated on growth projections for the township.
The overall cost of the project is $60.4 million but consultant EVB Engineering says that could be reduced to $20.1 million based on two-thirds funding from senior levels of government.
Based on EVB’s timeline and if everything goes according to plan, building of the sewage and water plants wouldn’t happen for another four to six years from now. The township would first have to buy or expropriate land for the piping based on the results of the environmental assessment.
As for hooking up to the City of Cornwall for water and sewer, that was taken off the table because the township and city “failed to come to a suitable arrangement” to service the east side of Boundary Road, the report said. Negotiations lasted almost six years with no deal.
Glen Walter has hit a roadblock in recent years when it comes to building new homes. With limited capacity in the plants there has been little or no connections available.
In fact, both plants have granted more connections than should be allowed. Other than previously approved connections, the township can not give any water and sewer connections this year for new building in Glen Walter.