A tentative deal to give the Township of Esquimalt cash and a host of amenities in exchange for an unpopular sewage treatment plant will go before Greater Victoria politicians on Wednesday.
The proposal, hammered out by senior staff from Esquimalt and the Capital Regional District, could clear one of the last hurdles for the $783-million sewage treatment project by settling a long-running zoning dispute at McLoughlin Point.
The CRD is offering an annual $55,000 “community impact mitigation fee” for at least five years to compensate Esquimalt for the proposed plant, as well as stringent odour control, a promise to barge construction material to the site, a million-dollar bike and path system, public art and an oceanside walkway.
The new McLoughlin Point rezoning package, which a CRD staff report calls a “genuine effort” to resolve the dispute, goes before the CRD’s sewage committee.
If approved, the issue could end up back at Esquimalt council on Nov. 18 and spark another round of public hearings in early December.
“With something as important as this, you wouldn’t want to not hear from your public,” said Esquimalt Mayor Barb Desjardins. “The important thing for all members of council is to have an open mind.”
The CRD and Esquimalt have been at loggerheads over McLoughlin Point since July, when Esquimalt refused to pass the CRD’s rezoning application for a sewage treatment plant and instead passed its own alternative bylaw demanding more amenities and money.
The new deal meets many of Esquimalt’s demands, which the CRD had originally claimed were illegal.
The CRD is offering the $55,000 annual payment for five years, at which point Esquimalt could take ownership of a $7.5-million new district energy sewage heat system that would potentially connect to Esquimalt’s town core (including its recreation centre), Department of National Defence property and Victoria.
In response to community concerns about heavy truck traffic during construction, the CRD said it will ask companies bidding on the project to factor in the cost of barging construction material to and from McLoughlin Point, as well as fix any damage to local roads from trucks.
The plant project would also include $950,000 in bike and path upgrades along Lyall Street, near Macaulay Elementary School, as well as a $100,000 ocean walkway in front of the plant and a $100,000 allowance for public art at the treatment facility.
It’s unclear if the deal will be approved by the CRD sewage committee, where some directors have opposed giving a single community benefits to host a regional facility.
Sewage committee chairwoman Denise Blackwell said politicians must still debate whether issues such as barging make sense, given the cost. “There’s concerns it’s not a reasonable thing to ask for,” she said.
The proposal could also face a rough ride at Esquimalt council, where some councillors have said they don’t want the sewage plant no matter the amenities.
If the deal fails to pass, CRD staff warn it “will have serious consequences for the program schedule and cost.”
The remaining option would be to appeal to B.C. Environment Minister Mary Polak to dictate a solution, which she has, so far, refused to do.
The CRD had hoped to tender the plant project and start construction by mid-2014, with the entire sewage treatment system online by 2018.
