Prince Edward County council is moving closer to a decision on how to pay for what is expected to be a massive expansion of the village of Wellington over the next 20 years.
At its meeting Thursday afternoon, council’s Committee of the Whole will see a recommendation that an Area-Specific By-law be prepared and soon passed to guide how multi-millions of dollars worth of water and sewer upgrades and expansion will be paid for.
With the number of housing developments now in the works for Wellington the population is expected to increase to around 5,000 from the current 2,000 by 2031 and projections estimate the population could be close to 9,000 by 2041.
Even if there were no major development in Wellington the county would have to undertake around $18 million worth of upgrades to existing water/sewer infrastructure.
County staff estimates that work plus the expansion of services made necessary by large housing developments will cost a total of $68 million over the years.
A consultant’s study says new development will be responsible for $52 million of that total and an Area-Specific Development Charge By-law would require developers to pay that cost.
Staff is recommending the developers pay those charges up front to prevent a burden on ratepayers. The up-front payments would be secured by Letters of Credit.
Prince Edward County council’s Committee of the Whole meets virtually Thursday afternoon at 1 p.m.
