Niverville citizens reject plan to modernize part of town’s water system
A plan to modernize part of Niverville's water system has been flushed.
Impacted residents overwhelmingly rejected a proposal to install and connect to new water mains.
Under the proposed plan, a $3 million grant from the province would cover half the installation cost of water mains in the older area of Niverville where people currently rely on well water.
The town said the rest of the bill would go to those homeowners, which would have run them between $500 and $12,000 over ten years depending on lot sizes.
Meantime, if residents wanted to then hook up to the water main, they would face another bill ranging from $3,500 to $25,000
The town said the average property cost for both is around $19,000, plus a quarterly water bill.
Resident Trevor Laurie said there is nothing wrong with the water he gets from his well, which flows into his Niverville home.
"One - it's free, and two - I have a lot of filters on it, so you can't even tell that it's well water. It tastes fine,” he said.
Trevor Laurie is pictured during an interview on May 22, 2024 at his Niverville home. (Jeff Keele/CTV News Winnipeg)
He’s talked to a few neighbours, who also aren’t on board with the new plan.
"I don't think all of that should be on the homeowner,” he said.
Due to the high price tag, a survey was done of the 700 impacted homeowners. Half responded, and nearly 80 percent of them said no to the plan.
As a result, the town council is not moving ahead.
"It's the proper thing to do, so it was a strenuous process to come up and say ‘no, we're not going to do this project at this time,’” said Niverville Deputy Mayor Chris Wiebe.
Niverville Deputy Mayor Chris Wiebe.is pictured on May 22, 2024 at the town's office. (Jeff Keele/CTV News Winnipeg)
The town said there are benefits to installing and connecting to a water main – namely safe drinking water, improved quality and the addition of fire hydrants in the neighbourhood.
"It's actually a real benefit when it comes to firefighting in this community,” Wiebe said.
There is also that $3 million from the province that won’t be on the table forever. The town has it until 2026 if it wants to dive into the issue again.
Wiebe said the town council likely won’t revisit the issue until next year.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
A new tax filing system could give Canadians more than $1 billion in unclaimed benefits: PBO
Canadians would get more than $1 billion in unclaimed benefits each year through an automatic tax filing system, according to a report published by the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO).
'All hands on deck situation': City of Calgary declares state of local emergency over water main break
The City of Calgary declared a local state of emergency Saturday morning in response to the latest developments in a major water main break that is impacting the city.
Video shows northern Ont. storm hammer shoreline, breaking dock
The owner of a northern Ont. camp is continuing to clean up after an intense storm that prompted a tornado warning Thursday ripped through the area breaking his dock and downing trees.
U.K. royals unite on palace balcony as Princess of Wales returns to public view after cancer diagnosis
London put on a display of birthday pageantry Saturday for King Charles III, a military parade that marked the Princess of Wales ' first public appearance since her cancer diagnosis early this year.
Trudeau calls into question findings of stunning watchdog foreign interference report
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he has concerns with how conclusions were gathered in a spy watchdog report.
Abducted child found dead and sister injured in suspected human trafficking case, authorities say
36-year-old Daniel Callihan was arrested Thursday after a 35-year-old mother was found dead and her two abducted daughters were later discovered in Mississippi – one dead and the other alive – in what investigators say may be a human trafficking case.
Man who stabbed Mexican tourist in Vancouver Tim Hortons 2 years ago released from prison, police warn
Vancouver police are warning the public that the man who stabbed a stranger in a downtown coffee shop in January 2022 has been released and will be living in the city again.
Here’s what we know about the 5 new hotspots on the broken water main: City of Calgary
Late Friday afternoon, the City of Calgary held a media availability to deliver an update on the status of the 16 Avenue water main break that delivered shocking news.
One person in custody after armed Manitoulin Island standoff
The armed standoff that created a large police presence on Manitoulin Island on Saturday morning has ended peacefully and one suspect is in custody, police confirmed to CTVNewsNorthernOntario.ca.