Thunder Bay - Unless the city opts for a different source of funding, property owners could expect to pay a stormwater utility fee within the next couple of years.
City councillors received an update on the stormwater management plan this week. The update included a utility fee to help pay for the full cost of operating and maintaining the new storm water system.
The city’s infrastructure and operations general manager Kerri Marshall said the plan has been presented to council.
The document discusses the types of programs, projects, operation and maintenance activities that would be included in a sustainable stormwater management program.
It also goes into details about the level of funding that would be required to fund the whole cost of operating and maintaining stormwater infrastructure.
Specifically, the plan has a strong focus on green infrastructure “so we can provide for increase in resiliency in our infrastructure to mitigate the impacts of climate change,” Marshall said.
To move forward with that, the plan recommends moving to a stormwater utility in order to produce sustainable funds to operate and maintain the program.
“We are still in the early stages. What is recommended at this time is that administration takes some time over the next year to develop a specific financing strategy,” Marshall said.
“To look at different options generating the specific revenue for the storm water management fund.”
A utility fee for property owners isn’t necessarily the only possible funding source for the city.
Marshall said revenue could be generated to fund the program through tax revenue, the sewer rate reserve, or even existing programs and grants.
