An agreement to resolve the ongoing septic issues at the Anmore Green Estates (AGE) housing development that has leaked E. coli and fecal coliform onto the grounds of nearby Eagle Mountain middle school is “baby steps” closer.
But there are still “a lot of hurdles to jump,” said Diane MacSporran, of the school’s parent advisory council, after Port Moody-Coquitlam MLA Rick Glumac announced the appointment of a facilitator to smooth negotiations.
Glumac told a Nov. 12 meeting of the PAC the facilitator will “help move things along” between AGE and Anmore village council by working to “achieve consensus on the facts of the situation, the costs and the actions required by each party." He added the facilitator will also help secure any agreements required to connect the 51-unit strata complex to the regional sewer system at a pipe in Port Moody, about 60 metres away.
Those agreements include one with School District 43 to allow access for the connection to run through its property and any potential cost impact it might have, a flow report for the city of Port Moody and a local service area bylaw to be passed by the village of Anmore.
Glumac said he understands the frustration parents, school staff and students are feeling after a hillside field that was often used as a play area and shortcut was fenced off just before Christmas 2017 because contaminated ground water had been detected at several sites at the base of the hill during routine testing earlier that year.
“No one wants to see this take any longer than it needs to,” Glumac said.
Brandie Roberts, the vice-president of AGE’s strata council, said the facilitator’s appointment is “progress,” as is a recent agreement from the Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Discharge District that administers sewer systems throughout the region to waive annual growth charges that could be levied to the development’s homeowners for the sewer hookup. Instead, they will be charged a one-time connection fee of $250,257, or $4,907 per home.
But Roberts said that’s still too much as the homeowners have already agreed to bear the full cost of designing, engineering and constructing the hookup, estimated to be a further $250,000.
“This remains a substantial cost for the families that live here in AGE.”
Meanwhile, the clock is ticking on a requirement by the Ministry of Environment for the village of Anmore to submit a liquid waste management plan by Dec. 31. The original deadline was April 30 but it was extended after George Heyman, B.C’s minister of environment, rejected the village’s first submission because he said it didn’t fulfill several requirements, including having it prepared and signed by a qualified professional and after undertaking a public consultation process.
That plan basically stated Anmore would continue with the status quo for dealing with its liquid waste, putting the onus on individual homeowners to build and maintain their own self-contained septic systems.
Juli Halliwell, Anmore’s chief administrative officer, said the village remains committed to resolving the sewage situation at Anmore Green and is working closely with the facilitator to help make that happen.
But Roberts said a recent decision by Anmore council to begin consideration of a proposal by Gilic Global Development Management Inc., which used to be known as Brilliant Circle Group, to develop an 82-acre Anmore portion of the 253-acre Ioco Lands into a dense, mixed-use neighbourhood that would be home to more than 4,200 residents and include 500,000 sq. ft. of retail and commercial spaces, calls into question its aspirations to maintain the village’s “semi-rural” character.
In its proposal, the developer anticipates the project would bring new services to Anmore, including connections to the regional water and sewer systems.
Roberts said it’s been the village’s contention that it will never connect to a regional sewer system that has informed its demand AGE pay for all the costs to hook into such a system.
Halliwell said any thought entertaining construction of a sewer system in Anmore remains a long way off.
“The village has been consistently clear in our communication that our current policies and bylaws do not allow for a municipal wide sewer system,” she said.
