Peachland mayor, councillor lobbies province for sewer funding

Photo: District of Peachland

Coun. David Collins (left) and Peachland mayor Patrick Van Minsel (right) meeting with Infrastructure Minister Bowinn Ma.

Eight provincial cabinet ministers got an earful about Peachland issues when Mayor Patrick Van Minsel and Coun. David Collins visited the legislature last week.

The two council members’ top priority was to push for provincial funding to expand the sewer system.

While several ministers supported Peachland’s bid for extra funding, they weren’t the ones who can open up the purse strings. A cabinet minister who might have some influence there is housing and municipal affairs minister Ravi Kahlon, who Van Minsel will meet with on April 15.

The mayor plans to present a full written report on the Victoria trip, but was waiting for more feedback from the province before finalizing it. He and Collins gave some verbal impressions on Tuesday.

“We started off with the ministry of environment,” said Collins. “The strategy there was to get a letter of endorsement to help with sewer funding. And to impress that it is not something that can be let go for 10, 20 more years — that it’s urgent, especially when you have septic fields failing."

“They satisfied that request,” said Collins. “They don’t have any funding themselves unless it’s an emergency environmental situation.”

The Peachlanders also met with Infrastructure Minister Bowinn Ma.

“That was not our ticket,” said Collins, “but she gave us a name on the premier’s staff to connect with as far as sewer funding goes.”

“Minister of Infrastructure –– very strange meeting,” said Van Minsel. “Very good meeting, but they’re not the ministry of infrastructure, they’re called the ministry of infrastructure. Don’t ask me, I’m still pondering on that one.”

A report last year said 1,604 dwellings are still using septic tanks in Peachland..

“Capital projects such as sewer extensions are costly and Peachland's population of 6,300 cannot fund major expansions simply with taxes,” Van Minsel wrote in a letter to provincial officials last year.