The District of Lantzville might not be ready to tap into Nanaimo water, but it’s considering a $750,000 investment to lay the pipe.
Lantzville politicians are hashing out the next five-year financial plan, which shows the potential for the district to put in pipe this year for a Lantzville-Nanaimo water connection.
The $750,000 cost is an estimate from engineers and is considered a placeholder in the budget, according to district employees. Council will ultimately decide if and when the infrastructure is built.
Brad McRae, chief administrative officer, said the pipe would allow the district to tie into Nanaimo without having to turn on the water, which would be another cost.
Coun. Will Geselbracht believes the pipe work should have been done last year. It would be a “safety valve,” he said. If the district’s wells, slated to undergo replacement and rehabilitation, don’t produce any more water, or the Foothills development doesn’t come up with more water, he said there’s always the Nanaimo hookup.
“The thing is, we have to put the pipe in the ground.”
He also sees it having a dual purpose, not only providing for that eventual hookup into city water, but also to supply water to people along Lantzville Road.
“What we want to do is extend water to everybody in Lantzville and so this pipe would be able to supply all those folks along Lantzville Road,” he said.
Coun. Denise Haime, however, doesn’t believe the district is ready for the infrastructure. The district plans to seek revisions to its water deal with Nanaimo. Unless Nanaimo changes the water agreement, “where will that pipe go?” she said. “We’ll spend three quarters of a million dollars on a pipe to nowhere. It makes no sense.”
The pipe is proposed to go from Stronge Road to Schook Road.