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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
CentrePort service projects lag
City, RM of Rosser still haven't struck water, sewer deal
BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS ARCHIVES Thus far, 23 companies have bought land in CentrePort Canada business parks. The area on the city's northwest outskirts is to become a transportation hub. (WINNIPEG FREE PRESS) Photo Store
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Winnipeg has yet to strike a deal to extend its water and sewer pipes to service an inland port, even though officials hope the main pipeline is in the ground late next year.
The Rural Municipality of Rosser is still working to finalize a service-sharing agreement with Winnipeg to extend city water and sewer pipes to service more than 405 hectares of industrial land for CentrePort Canada. While some businesses that have purchased CentrePort land have dug wells to ensure they have adequate fire suppression, other interested companies have held off until the RM secures a deal with Winnipeg.
RM of Rosser Reeve Frances Smee said it's taken longer than anticipated to work out a deal, as the pipes will only service industrial land. She said the agreement is much different than the city's deal with West St. Paul, which focuses on the cost and revenue involved in hooking up homes to city pipes.
Smee said there is no fixed target date to finalize a deal, but both sides are hoping it concludes "as soon as possible."
She said the negotiations have not been deterred by a court challenge from two Ontario First Nations on Shoal Lake, where Winnipeg gets its water. The First Nations claim Winnipeg has no right to sell water to neighbouring municipalities before it resolves decades worth of claims over lake water.
"It's taken longer than we first anticipated, so it's hard for me to say how long it will take," Smee said. "We're certainly moving ahead as quickly as we can."
Last July, the city and province agreed to split the $17-million cost of extending water and sewer pipes to the RM of Rosser, which are needed to service the CentrePort transportation hub on Winnipeg's northwest edge. City council approved a service-sharing policy in December and gave chief administrative officer Phil Sheegl the authority to negotiate and finalize agreements with neighbouring municipalities, including Rosser and West St. Paul.
CentrePort CEO Diane Gray said she hopes the main city pipeline is in the ground by the end of 2013 and that both parties can reach an agreement soon to allow enough time to tender the pipeline's construction.
So far, 23 companies have purchased land in CentrePort business parks.
Gray said a number of businesses are currently operating and have chosen to build holding tanks or dig wells to ensure their businesses comply with regulations and have an adequate amount of water in the event of fire. Others are holding off, she said, and the completion of the service-sharing deal will likely trigger a significant amount of additional construction in the industrial area.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition August 7, 2012 A3
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