Increased Budget Approved For Critical Village Of Cumberland Infrastructure Project

Cumberland council has approved a budget increase for the village’s Wastewater Upgrades Project.

“We understand that project cost increases affect everyone in Cumberland and we’re working hard to reduce that pressure on our residents while ensuring that we can respond to other needs in the community,” said Cumberland Mayor Vickey Brown.

“At the end of the day, we do not have a choice, our wastewater system must be improved now.”

An update on the project, presented at last week’s council meeting, included an overview of budget increases due to increased materials costs, unexpected site conditions, inflation, delays in detailed design and other factors.

It also included notice of a wastewater federal enforcement warning letter, notifying the Village that the current treatment system does not meet the requirements of the current operating permit – and could face significant fines in the future if improvements do not proceed.

A budget increase of $1.52 million has been approved by council, and the Village proposes to proceed with an Alternate Approval Process to seek residents’ approval for the additional proposed borrowing.

More information will be shared in March about the borrowing process and impacts to residents’ tax rates. In the interim, $1.52 million of temporary funding will be used from the Village’s reserves, in order to keep the project moving forward.

With the revised budget, phase 1 of the Wastewater Upgrades Project is estimated to cost $16.7 million (from $14.5 million previously estimated).

Council also approved a recommendation to close the RV Sani Station on Dunsmuir Ave.

The closure comes following concerns about increased loading on the treatment system and the impacts of the station due to lack of control about how much.

To learn more, visit Village of Cumberland.