Planning for future development in Lido Page

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This article was published 16/12/2019 (2334 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As part of the process to develop a secondary plan and low-pressure sewer system in the Lido Plage area within the RM of Cartier, residents recently attended a public open house held by Landmark Planning & Design.

The municipal council hired Landmark as a consultant and representatives from the Manitoba Water Services Board and Stantec Consulting were also at the Nov. 27 open house.

If it’s adopted by Cartier council, the secondary plan will govern future residential and business development within the Lido Plage area, reeve Dale Fossay said.

“The plan, which is basically a map, defines areas where different types of housing may occur. The area is currently by far two-acre lots, the plan allows for some area of smaller lots, for example, one-acre. There is also an area set aside for more condensed housing of some sort i.e. condos, townhouses etc.,” Fossay said in an email.

Results of a community workshop held on May 7 and a community survey done in October were presented. Common themes identified were the desire to keep lot size to at least one acre or larger, and the need for more paved roads and walking paths.

Information on possible future use of the area that was White Horse Campgrounds for single and two-family residential and also commercial uses was presented.

According to information presented as part of the Lido Plage secondary plan, further residential development in the area partly depends upon local residents switching from the current system of septic fields to a municipal sewer system. This would facilitate development of lot sizes smaller than the current two acres.

The low pressure sewer system was identified as the most practical for a low density residential area such as Lido Plage and similar systems are in operation in Headingley, St. Francois Xavier, St. Eustache and Springstein.

A memorandum of understanding between the RMs of Cartier and Headingley was preliminarily agreed to in 2018 to have wastewater from the 210 Lido Plage residential properties be treated at the Headingley wastewater treatment plant.

Landmark states that the estimated cost of the low pressure sewer project is about $9.5 million. It’s expected that federal and provincial grants could cover about 75 per cent and the remainder would be raised through a local improvement district with property owners paying.
The municipal council has applied for a grant of about $6.8 million from the Investing in Canada Plan that would cover three-quarters of the project’s price tag. This would leave property owners each paying approximately $13,100. This could be paid as a lump sum or through annual municipal tax payments.

Property owners would also have to pay for connecting their home’s septic tank to the municipal wastewater pipe on the adjacent road right-of-way and for a new pump and check valve. It’s expected that the cost will range from $5,000 to $10,000.

According to Landmark’s research, the average Lido Plage home uses about 170 cubic metres of water annually, and at the current Headingley sewer rate, this would equal about $422 per year.

The next steps include finalizing the wastewater system design, finding out if a grant will be given, then if so, finalizing the service sharing agreement with Headingley and setting up a local improvement district, however Fossay cautioned that the project’s development depends on funding from the other levels of government.

“This is a very large area to service and accordingly the cost is high. It needs to be emphasized that such a project would only be feasible with significant contributions from both the provincial and federal government. The RM applies for funding on an ongoing basis, however we have not received any indication of support to this date. The purpose of the study was to obtain hard numbers (should we receive provincial and/or federal support),” Fossay said.

The secondary plan will be finalized, then receive first reading by council. A public hearing on the plan is anticipated in early 2020.

Landmark’s secondary and low-pressure sewer system presentations are available under Local Notices at http://www.rm-cartier.mb.ca