A new report for St. Thomas city council says local taxpayers will not be on the hook for the wastewater treatment needs for the new Volkswagon PowerCo battery plant, along with other industries at Yarmouth Yards. The new Dalewood Water Reclamation Facility, currently under construction, will handle wastewater generated within the new industries. At $440 million it is the most costly project associated with the Yarmouth Yards infrastructure project. Homeowners Joanne and Dennis Horwath worry they’ll have to foot the bill through higher taxes. “Somebody has to pay for it. Like all the infrastructure throughout St. Thomas, it’s gotta come from somewhere. So I’m sure we’re going to get a hike in our taxes,” said Dennis. “And this year our taxes has gone up like another hundred dollars,” Joanne added. A new report by the city treasurer says the project will be paid for mostly through land sale agreements, development charges, and transfer payments. “As the town continues to grow, we’ll probably do bigger things,” said Mayor Joe Preston. “As we take on Industries the size of PowerCo, we’ll have to do bigger things. But we don’t do them with fear. We do them looking forward as to what the revenue base can be, what the city can handle, how many new people will come and live in St. Thomas,” Preston explained. According to the report the city is expected to have about $273 million available to fund construction of the facility. The $167 million balance will be funded through long term debt. The city can avoid increasing taxes or utility payments to pay down the debt by using development charges, land sale revenues, and industrial servicing agreements. “Something like a wastewater plant is a pretty safe debt because it can be paid for by the use of the project, itself, after it’s done,” said Preston. Much like the industries it will serve, the new wastewater treatment facility, located on Dalewood Drive in the city’s northwest, is massive in size. It boasts advanced treatment options, cleaning wastewater through a multitude of different processes. It’s expected to begin receiving its first flows by 2030. In the meantime, the report says it will cost $9.7 million per year after that to service the $167 million debt. Preston says growth will pay for growth. “Municipalities have to go into debt sometimes to build great big things to make the future look better. This is one of them.” “A lot of people are coming to St. Thomas, probably. So there’s going to be more taxpayers,” surmised Joanne Horwath.
