A decision on which project the city will submit for a federal-provincial infrastructure funding program is delayed until next month.
City council voted Monday night to postpone approval of the $1.41 million Fraser River Bench Land Outfall Remediation project to the New Building Canada Fund's first intake to its Small Communities Fund program. The project would build infrastructure to protect against future erosion and to fix erosion that has already happened along the Fraser River Bench Lands near Lower College Heights.
Staff recommended the project given that it is shovel-ready, has a completed final design and is partially funded, said corporate services director Kathleen Soltis.
Work would include installation of storm water piping and the construction of a flow control berm. The city has already spent $91,000 on design work and an archeological assessment.
The deadline for applications to the program is Feb. 18. Coun. Murry Krause suggested putting the brakes on a decision until Feb. 2 in order to have a conversation with the next phase of Hart Highlands residents facing a local area service tax for installation of a sanitary sewer system.
Staff did look at water and sewer projects, said Soltis, but determined that the utilities were well-funded to cover any necessary work, while the Fraser Bench project required a funding source.
If successful, the grant would cover a maximum of two-thirds of the project cost. If the application is approved for the maximum amount, it would leave only $470,000 to be covered by the city, which has already set aside $550,000 for the work.
