King hopes to create stormwater management plan

August 30, 2017 · 0 Comments

By Mark Pavilons

King Township will begin the process of creating a comprehensive stormwater management plan for the municipality.
As well, councillors agreed to add a flood study component, and will look into the feasibility of a stormwater utility.
The Township is responsible for an extensive network of stormwater infrastructure in King City, Nobleton, Schomberg, Laskay, Snowball, Lloydtown, Ansnorveldt and Pottageville. The Township also manages an extensive network of culverts in the rural areas.
While King initially included stormwater within its Water and Wastewater Servicing Mater Plan, staff determined a more comprehensive study was needed. Recent storms and flooding in Schomberg and Nobleton, as well as impacts of commercial development in King City, all point to the need for an up to date stormwater management plan.
“… stormwater infrastructure is being challenged by events of significant rainwater duration and/or intensity. As a result, municipalities are identifying deficiencies within the support infrastructure and determining there are potentially significant budget impacts to respond to these identified deficiencies,” staff noted.
Maintaining such infrastructure is costly and some municipalities –?nearby Aurora, Vaughan and Newmarket – have turned to a stormwater utility fee. This is meant to ensure a stable base of funding to support development, maintenance and replacement of the pipes. Staff will be examining the feasibility of this in King.
Staff concluded a comprehensive stormwater management plan is “imperative to the long-term evaluation, operation and maintenance of the Township stormwater infrastructure.”
Staff also believe there is value in exploring funding options.
Nobleton resident Susan Lloyd Swail appeared before council, asking that a comprehensive flood study be included in the master plan. The Kinsley Street resident noted she’s experienced flooding on her property for many years, and it’s getting worse. Whilst there are companies who can repair water damage – and Swail points to a company who provided Mooresville Water Damage Repair for her family in North Carolina as an example – if the damage can be avoided in the first place, then that is obviously advantageous.
Mayor Steve Pellegrini noted the comprehensive stormwater management review is long overdue and he’s please to see this work progress. He asked staff to include a flood study in the evaluation of needed remediation work.
Councillor Cleve Mortelliti stressed council’s priority is a detailed flood plan. Once this is created, council can then look at finding ways to fund the necessary work.
Staff will return to council in early 2018 with a report presenting their findings, and looking for further direction.