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Smoky River Water Co-op in midst of major construction
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Adam Gladue stands beside the sign from the tee-off box at Hole 2. He managed to make a hole-in-one on Aug. 7 at this particular hole at Smoky River Regional Golf Course in McLennan.
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Susan Thompson
for South Peace News
The Smoky River Water Co-op is in the midst of their 2009 construction phase.
“We’ve started on the line north of Donnelly,” says Rita Maure, treasurer of the co-op. Directional drilling is also being done in Falher and Girouxville.
Contractor Carco Pipeline Inc. from Sylvan Lake is doing the work and has also hired local subcontractors.
The co-op is hoping to complete its current construction phase by Dec. 31.
“We are very optimistic that all work will be completed within our timeline.”
The current construction phase was made possible by financial assistance of the M.D. of Smoky River No,. 130 and the provincial and federal governments through a Canada-Alberta Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund (CAMRIF) grant. The Smoky River Water Co-op’s membership and the M.D. are responsible for a third of the funds needed for the project.
Several members of the water co-op made a presentation at the M.D.’s special meeting of council on Sept. 22 to request extra funding.
The water-co-op is jumping on the opportunity to get water to more members east of Guy, and asked for more funding to put in oversized lines and a booster station at Guy. The oversized lines ensure the water co-op can handle future expansion without having to go back in and twin lines.
“Without the support of the M.D. of Smoky River No. 130 this phase would not have been feasible,” Maure says.
The M.D. will try to use a portion of government funding to help pay for booster pump in Guy, which will cost a total of $135,000, and will also help fund the installation of oversized lines.
The water co-op will now seek a lender to cover the deficit they’ll be facing to pay for the construction, and then repay that loan from line maintenance fees and the sale of water.
The M.D.’s help with funding means that the Smoky River Water Co-op will be able to connect 79 out of 126 waiting members to the water co-op. Of those 79, the co-op had already committed to hook-up 66, and will be adding 13 extra to that list.
“We thank all of our membership who were given short notice to put their connection fee in place,” says Maure.
The water co-op has been trying to make people who have been waiting the longest for a hook-up their priority.
“In this construction phase we did strive to do that as much as possible.”
Once this construction phase is complete any future hook-ups will depend on new funding.
“What I tell people who call me is that for this funding we’re at our maximum,” says Maure. “We’ve allocated all of our funds.”
However, if people wish to receive water co-op services in the future, it’s still important they join now.
“If people are interested, they need to buy memberships, so when we do get a new grant, we know they’re out there.”
Memberships are $100.
That money can be refunded later if a member decides they don’t want to be part of the water co-op. There is an additional fee for actual hook-up to the water co-op, which is currently $10,500 plus GST but may increase due to higher future construction costs.
The ultimate goal of the co-op is to reach every resident of the M.D.
For more information on the water-co-op contact Rita Maure at 780-324-2124.
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