MORRISBURG – The Municipality of South Dundas got a head start on the 2022 budget last month with a summary of the Water and Wastewater Budget.
In a special meeting held Dec. 15, updates were provided on the four components of the Water and Wastewater Budget, including the South Dundas Water System, and the Morrisburg, Iroquois, and Williamsburg Wastewater Systems. Politicians were also given a few other previews of what’s to come with the new year’s budget deliberations.
Mayor Steven Byvelds was unable to attend the session, leaving Deputy Mayor Kirsten Gardner to lead the meeting. Armed with informational binders, members of council were able to ask questions throughout the presentation, which began with a presentation from deputy treasurer Shawn Mason and followed by manager of Water and Wastewater Operations Denis Villeneuve’s more in-depth presentation.
“Staff is recommending a 5.08 per cent ($26.13) increase to the residential water flat rate from $513.87 per year to $540 per year. No change is proposed to the consumption rate of $0.70 per cubed metre or the water plant capital rate of $1.03 per cubed metre,” Mason said in his report. “The Morrisburg and Iroquois surcharges, currently at 75 per cent and 100 per cent respectively, are not proposed to change, nor is the Williamsburg annual rate currently at a base amount of $180 per year. However, the increase to the water flat increase will result in an increase to the wastewater customer billings.”
Villeneuve began by walking South Dundas politicians through his PowerPoint presentation slide by slide. The presentation focused on a review of the department’s accomplishments in 2021. This included a discussion on why a new vehicle is needed.
“We have to do our checks every 72 hours,” Villeneuve said. “So, we’re actually travelling quite a way to do sampling and stuff like that.”
This discussion then led to questions about COVID-19 funding, as well as the different water and wastewater department reserves. Chief administrative officer Shannon Geraghty said he’d rather not take money from the reserves, as they’ll be needed down the road due to South Dundas’ aging infrastructure.
For a full play-by-play of the meeting, visit the municipality’s YouTube page and watch the Dec. 15 special meeting. The reports and presentations can be found in that day’s agenda package.
As for the rest of the 2022 budget, South Dundas politicians will be addressing this year’s finances later this month with meetings on Jan. 18 (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.) and Jan. 20 (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.). Further information on these meetings can be found on the municipal website (southdundas.com).
