ATHABASCA – The developers of the Old Man Winter Brewhouse proposed to be built in the old Home Hardware building near the riverfront hit a snag in the road recently when it was determined it would cost another $85,000 to connect the building to the town’s sewer system.
Town councillors reviewed a formal letter of request from developers Dennis and Darlene MacNeil at their Jan. 19 regular meeting to do just that, but after a half-hour discussion where everyone had their chance to speak, a few concerns were made clear around the table, and council voted to defer a decision to a future meeting after more investigation from administration and the engineers.
The MacNeils’ letter acknowledged the warm acceptance of the project by council, and urged continued cooperation. Council and the developers see it as an opportunity to develop and share the Athabasca brand and bring in local and tourist dollars to help invigorate the downtown area, as well as add to the town’s tax base.
“When we first did this proposal, we were all very much aware of the fact that this building does not and never did have sewer available. If we are to move forward it would be imperative that we are connected to both town water and sewage,” wrote the MacNeils. “While we understand that COVID has influenced a lot of different aspects of society, we are anxious to move forward on this project.”
Town officials have met with the developers several times to discuss their options since the MacNeil’s first approached council in October, and the town put their engineers to work to develop some options with cost estimates.
“The water lines run along the rear of the property, so water connection is not an issue. Sewer, however, is along 50th Avenue and the best approach is to create a utility right of way across the east side of the train station property and run a sewer line from 50th Avenue to the building,” CAO Rachel Ramey said in her written request for decision.
Coun. Dave Pacholok expressed some concern over the nearly flat angle of the slope where the sewer pipes would be installed
“I hate to put this in and find out that it's not going to do the job, we have to make sure, one way or the other, if it has to be done, to make sure it gets done properly to the point that it works all the time,” he said.
Coun. Rob Balay agreed: “I had the same concern about when you get to where there's only like one per cent slope on a gravity line, if you get any sag in the future, you're always going to have maintenance problems.”
Utilities supervisor Terry Kosinski said he was confident in the engineers, but had the same concerns as Balay and Pacholok.
“We can put it in, but if this going to be for the long term, and if we see any kind of line sag, it’s just going to be an operational nightmare for us. Even years down the road. That's a concern,” said Kosinski.
He added there was some talk of drilling directionally to a manhole, but this would require a holding tank and pump system to be installed, which would in turn require more maintenance overall than a gravity feed system would.
Coun. Tannia Cherniwchan took some issue with the engineering and cost estimates having already taken place, on CAO Ramey’s request, as it appeared to her the town was already committed to follow the project through. She cited several similar occurrences with developers in the past.
“Historically, people have been told by the town that all research engineering and projects costs were the responsibility of the developer. So, this is why I am questioning what has been going on,” she said.
“I was making sure that I had all the information that we needed, so that council can make a decision. We didn't even know if this was a possibility,” Ramey responded, saying she would agree if it was a new development altogether. “However, this is an existing building. So, I think it's a little bit different. We've never received a request directly to council to put a service in for a new construction either.”
Coun. John Traynor said he fully supported the idea of a brewhouse at the riverfront, and with all the economic benefits that could come from that, but wasn’t ready to commit any funds towards the sewer project at this point.
“If we can work with the MacNeils and get this off the ground, I am in favor of it. However, I'm not convinced that we should take that money out of the public purse to do a project like this,” said Traynor.
After further discussion about who would meet to discuss what when, it was decided that after administration investigates further, council will meet to discuss, and then sit down with the developers in a second meeting to discuss how it’s going to be paid for.
“While we understand that these are truly difficult times, we also understand that by investing now will provide benefits that will reach far into the future. We look forward to future conversations around this issue and other issues that can strengthen the collaborative relationship that we currently share,” said the MacNeils in their letter.
