SOUTH DUNDAS – The infrastructure owned by the Municipality of South Dundas needs work – a lot of it.
It needs $5 million worth of work done over the next five years, according to the building condition assessment and 20 year capital plan completed by the South Dundas senior staff team.
David Jansen, director of parks, recreation and facilities for the municipality presented the report to council at their November 27 meeting.
“What’s written here isn’t gospel, it helps staff plan ahead with a full outlook,” he said.
In South Dundas’ two Seaway area plazas the municipality owns and maintains all of the infrastructure outside the walls of the plaza building.
Therefore they look after all of the operational needs such as snowplowing, and all of the maintenance needs of their infrastructure both above ground and underground.
The report details the poor condition of a number of infrastructure assets such as the parking lots of both plazas, and the canopy supports, clock tower, sidewalks and steps at the Morrisburg plaza and indicates that the longtime shortfall in funding infrastructure maintenance means that much of the infrastructure is reaching the end of its lifespan.
The report shows that there is almost $1.8 million worth of repairs and replacements needed within the next five years for the Iroquois Plaza. That amounts to an annual taxpayer funded allocation of $358,000 per year for the next five years.
The Morrisburg plaza needs $3.2 million worth of repairs and replacements over the next five years, which equates to an average taxpayer funded allocation of $643,000 per year for the next five years.
“It looks like this council has a lot of planning to do,” said South Dundas mayor Jason Broad.
South Dundas deputy mayor Marc St. Pierre asked staff to bring back to council legal documentation and information explaining how the municipality came to inherit ownership of these plazas.
South Dundas councillor Tom Smyth asked if the plaza store owners have a special area rate or if they are just taxed commercially?
Upon learning that they are taxed at the same commercial rate as all other South Dundas businesses, he asked: “Is it possible for them to have a line item to charge them more to recoup some of the costs?”
“It is allowed,” said Mayor Broad.
South Dundas councillor Danielle Ward said, “these are really big numbers. There will be tough decisions for us over the next couple of years.”
South Dundas councillor Cole Veinotte was absent from Monday’s council meeting.
Broad suggested that council should schedule a committee of the whole meeting for further discussion.
Council agreed.
“We can’t keep pushing the decisions. The only way to get started is to get stared,” said Broad.