t
The Aqua 7 Water Commission will be getting $1.785 million from Alberta Transportation and Municipal Affairs.
The money will be used to restructure the commissionís $13 million debt to decrease the cost of water for the seven member municipalities, including the town of Irricana, the villages of Acme, Carbon, Beiseker, Linden and the counties of Rocky View and Kneehill.
ìBasically, it will probably knock off about $350,000 per year,î said Kevin Miner, manager of Aqua 7. ìIt is good news.î
Miner said the commission will amalgamate two debts and increase its length of maturation by 12 years from 2030 to 2042.
The debt, currently in two accounts with interest rates of 4.39 and 6.18 per cent, will be combined into a single account with a new rate of less than four per cent, according to Miner. The loan will continue to be managed under the Alberta Capital Finance Authority, a government organization that provides funding to municipalities for capital projects.
ìOur two payments per year will be much lower,î said Miner. ìIt is totally up to the member municipalities how they deal with (the decrease).î
As a result, the commission will charge less to the municipalities for water. Each municipality will determine what it will do with the money.
Miner, who has been the commissionís manager for a year-and-a-half, said the commission will have to complete a revised budget and get Municipal Affairsí approval before receiving the money.
Alberta Transportation spokesperson Trent Bancarz said the unusual situation spurred the grant from the department, which normally only provides funding for capital projects.
ìIt was a very special grant, but it was just the circumstances surrounding this and we found a way to be able to help them,î said Bancarz, adding the grant is conditional on the commission submitting a debt recovery plan.
ìAs a government, we are really trying to promote regional water and wastewater systems, because it is a significantly more efficient way of doing things,î he said.
Beiseker Mayor Bruce Rowe, who has actively campaigned for a solution to the high cost of water in the village, said the funding announcement is welcomed.
ìI am encouraged that they are even thinking about it,î he said. ìIt shows that after six years, they are doing something.î
Last fall, Rowe announced Beisekerís intention to shut off the tap and leave the commission unless the Province stepped forward with some assistance for the cash-strapped group.
He said the Village will hold off on its decision because of the recent announcement, but will go ahead with a study on the viability of Beisekerís wells.
ìWe will wait to see what comes of this,î said Rowe.
ìIt is a big decision for us to make, so we want to see what the results of this are going to be.î
