PETITION

(Ed Note: Petition of some of the residents north of the Saugeen River presented by Joyce Stirling)
 

We, the owners of the majority of property in Saugeen Shores north of the Saugeen River, do not support the Town of Saugeen Shores – Expansion of Sanitary Sewers North of the Saugeen River Project, and hereby petition the town to stop the project.   

The property owners on this petition represent 60 % of the assessed property values (i.e. $65,530,400.00) and 56% (i.e. 265) of the properties north of the Saugeen River.   

We are opposed to the project due to some or all of the following reasons:  

1. The anti-democratic method by which the town initiated this project prior to obtaining input from, or formal consultation with, the current impacted property owners.
   • It appears there was a deliberate effort to leave contact with the property owners to the last minute. Notices went to 35 regulatory agencies in March while the property owners directly impacted by the project were not informed until late May with public meetings not held until mid June. We are very disappointed that there has been no official follow up after the two public meetings in which many good questions were asked. Everyone expected answers in a timely manner, but what we get is silence. The guiding principles of the Official Plan supports, as does Provincial legislation, the importance of community involvement.

    

2. The use of an outdated 1995 Gamsby & Mannerow study that was anecdotal and not based on scientific analysis as the basis to determine the “need” for the project.
   • Of the 480 property owners in 1995, 70 of 154 respondents (i.e. 15% of the total property owners) said they desired sewers. This did not demonstrate that the majority of property owners want or need sewers, yet that is somehow the conclusion several council members have drawn from the study. After undertaking this petition, it has now been determined that of the original 15% in favour of sewers, 60% have responded that they are no longer in favour. 

    

3. The reconstruction of roads to municipal standards that would include curbs, gutters, sidewalks, bike lanes and the widening of roads to accommodate same.
   • Property owners want assurances they will be consulted and have direct input when decisions relating to changes to their roads are made. 

    

4. The costs of the project that are to be born by the property owners.

• While this project is estimated at $17 million, it will pull more than $9 million out of the pockets of the 480 property owners north of the river; $6 million for construction and another $3 million for hook ups.  

      This includes:

• The downloading of road repair and road reconstruction costs
• The undetermined cost to bring the sewer service to the property line
• The associated costs for connection from the property line to residences
• The restoration costs to repair damage to properties as a result of the project
• Potential project cost overruns. The town is rushing into this project without a clear picture of the overall project costs. The town has historically exceeded budget on major projects (e.g. the library and medical centre to name a few recent ones). What assurances do we have that this project, which is at the expense of 480 property owners, will be any different?
• Many questions were asked at the public meetings about actual, precise costs, financing and cost differentials as they relate to the total project. But there were no answers. Everyone expected that further information would be forthcoming with direct notification to each property owner with better information on how they will be impacted. Without such basic information, property owners can not support this project. Would you personally ever commission repairs to be done on your home without any firm understanding of what the costs would be?  Asking the property owners to hand you a blank cheque is not acceptable.

 

5. The mandatory requirement to connect to the sewer system within 9 months at the property owner’s immediate expense. The Ministry of Housing guidelines rate septic systems according to risk.  0-10 years = low risk, 10-20 years = medium risk, over 20 years = high risk.
   • To date, the town has hinted that hook up for properties less than 5 years old can be deferred for 2 years. Property owners have yet to get a clear answer on what grandfathering arrangement may be considered. As no comprehensive study using scientific methods has been done, the town has also failed to demonstrate there is a risk due to septic systems in this area.

 

6. The lack of consideration and weighting given to the impact of current economic conditions on all property owners and the current demographic of the project area. 
   • The majority are retired and on fixed incomes. They are already bearing the brunt of a 30% decline in personal pension investments over the last 3 years. New property assessment increases in Saugeen Shores, at 8.9%, are the highest in all of Grey and Bruce counties and are higher than most of Ontario other than cottage country east of Toronto. Taxes and user fees in Bruce County are rising faster than most areas of the province, without any identifiable benefits. Current residents continue to pay for growth, despite recent adoption of development fees which are still lower than the actual cost of new development. 
   • The impact of current economic conditions on the savings of the property owners expected to make a large capital contribution to this project is not insignificant and is worthy of very serious reconsideration.

    

7. The financial hardship this project will cause some property owners.
   • No effort has been made to mitigate what could be a financial disaster for some people. Everyone is being treated as though they have deep pockets.
   • Financing by adding the sewer costs to the municipal tax bill over 10 years is not a viable option for many. If you were living on a pension or fixed income, do you honestly think you could find another $1,000 or more, per year for your taxes? Not to mention the immediate outlay in amounts upwards of $5,000 needed to hook up and repair your property. You will be forcing seniors, some of whom already pay 25% or more of their pension for realty taxes, to go into debt in order to be able to stay in their homes, while others will simply be forced to leave.

 

8. The potential for denser development north of the Saugeen River as a result of this project.
   • This area of the town is known as Special Policy Area #1. Pages 85 & 86 of the official plan show there were clear concerns about the environmental hazard, planned development and open space lands in the project area. The objective of this sanitary sewer project appears to be to provide the town with the opportunity to bypass the additional studies now required in Special Policy Area #1 as outlined in the Official Plan in order to allow denser development. Denser development is not what the residents of this area want. 

 

9. The availability of Federal & Provincial funding should not be the deciding factor to proceed with this project.
   • As one resident has so eloquently stated in a letter to the editor “The federal and provincial grants to stimulate economic activity in Saugeen Shores are not gifts. They form part of a huge accumulation of debt that all of us and our children will have to pay back through our taxes for many years to come.”

Perhaps town council should take the time, as we did, to knock on a few doors and speak to residents directly. You need to experience first hand the range of emotion we encountered while canvassing the neighbourhood in order to truly understand the negative impact this project will have on some people. Emotions ranged from rage and anger, while extreme worry, tears and stories of sleepless nights were the norm. 

Listen to the voice of the people who have added their names to this petition, and are expected to pay for this project, and who trusted you to represent their interests. Do the right thing, decline the Federal & Provincial funding and stop this project without any further delay.  

Submitted to the Town of Saugeen Shores: July 9, 2009.