Accessing water and sewer could be a costly proposition for residents of one Kingfisher neighbourhood.
The Regional District of North Okanagan will hold a petition process to determine if North Lakeshore property owners are willing to pay for the extension of sewer and water lines from the Mabel Lake utility.
“There are people avid they want it and people adamant they don’t want to pay for it,” said director Jackie Pearase.
Presently, North Lakeshore properties are served by private shallow water intakes in Mabel Lake and they do not meet Canadian drinking water guidelines.
In terms of effluent, it’s believed some properties may have failing septic systems and the sewer service is close at hand.
However, there would be a price to pay for extending both services.
The estimated cost to construct water main extensions is $691,000, meaning there would be a per property capital cost of $22,290. For sewer, the total price tag is $2,675,882, which translates into a per property capital cost of $19,532 and a connection fee of $1,600.
In total there are 31 properties that would get water and 137 properties that would get sewer.
Pearase admits the financial impact on residents could be steep but she believes sewer is essential to protect Mabel Lake.
“This is at least the second time this (proposal) has been done and it failed then. I hope people’s appreciation of the environment has increased,” she said.
Pearase also believes sewer connections could have a positive financial benefit.
“The difference between an outhouse and an indoor toilet is a big selling point for someone’s property value,” she said.
If the petition processes are successful, construction could be done in the fall of 2013 or the spring of 2014.
