CITY PROPOSES WATER & WASTE WATER DEAL WITH MARTENSVILLE

 
The City of Saskatoon is proposing to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the City of Martensville to negotiate an agreement to provide both water and  waste water services.

“This is a key step towards a regional planning approach for land use and servicing,” says Randy Grauer, Community Services Department General Manager.  “It’ll also help the City of Martensville to continue playing an important role in the growth and development of the Saskatoon Region.”

A report to City Council will be on its Agenda, which will be public information later this afternoon.

Martensville will soon reach its lagoon capacity and it approached the City to consider allowing a connection to Saskatoon’s existing Waste Water Treatment Plant.

“Basically, it’s an agreement to agree,” Grauer says and it sets out the regional planning goals of the City and Martensville, as well as creating an outline for a more detailed formal agreement on water and waste water services.

The MOU would be in effect until the City of Martensville reaches 20,000 people at which point it would be renegotiated.

“Saskatoon residents will not be subsidising those in Martensville,” Grauer says.  “We’re proposing the rates will be negotiated on the basis of Martensville customers paying a premium on top of what Saskatoon users pay.  The premium will be based on industry rate models and reviewed every three years.”

The cities would agree to work together on several points including:

• A regional plan including Martensville’s future land use plans.
• Explore tap water delivery opportunities
• A plan to fairly share the costs of developing new and upgrades to existing waste water and water infrastructure
• Cost estimates for sanitary sewer infrastructure including a lift station, a force main, an odour abatement structure, and a gravity pipe.

“The City is aware of odours near the Waste Water Treatment Plant.  Construction of a new odour abatement system is in the works and connecting Martensville would help pay for that project,” Grauer says.

City Council will consider the Administration report at its meeting, Monday, February 10, 2014.

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