Matthew Gallant and Joni Albert are homeowners at 149 Kelvin Grove Road and have asked the municipality to annex their property. Town council approved the request Monday night.
“It’s just something that needed to be done, and it was the easiest option,” said Gallant.
He said the move comes as a result of recent problems with his home’s damaged septic system.
The problem has been costly and he was facing another hefty bill, the lowest estimate of which was $15,000, to replace the septic system.
Rather than go through with the replacement, they asked the municipality if they could hook in to the town’s water and sewer systems.
The town extended water and sewer services to homes across the street from Gallant’s home several years ago. However, the area where he lives is one of several around Kensington where one side of the street is within the town boundaries while the other side is not. Gallant and Albert’s home falls in the later category, putting them technically in Kelvin Grove while their neighbours are in Kensington.
This close proximity to the system meant it was a relatively simple job to hook Gallant’s home up to the town’s services, but there was a catch.
Kensington has an as yet unwritten policy that says any household outside the town boundaries that wants to receive water/sewer services from the municipality must become part of the community.
If there is a main pipe nearby, the town will pay for the initial hookup; bringing the home into the town boundaries allows for those costs to be recouped through service fees and property taxes.
In the long-term, the town gains a taxpaying home in exchange for a relatively minor upfront expense.
Town chief administrative officer, Geoff Baker, said council decided to go this route in 2005 when it faced another request similar to Gallant’s. To his knowledge, this is only the second time the town has annexed a property in exchange for hooking it up to services.
“We feel it’s in the long-term best interest of the community. At the end of the day it’s about everyone within reasonable proximity to our town boundary contributing to the greater good of the town,” said Baker.
In addition to approving Gallant’s request to join the town, council also directed Baker to come up with a more permanent policy to deal with these types of requests.
The town must now write up a formal proposal to the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission, which will then examine the issue, hold a public meeting and ultimately send a recommendation to the provincial executive council for approval.
In the meantime, Gallant’s home has already been hooked up to municipal services.
@JournalPMacLean
Matthew Gallant and Joni Albert are homeowners at 149 Kelvin Grove Road and have asked the municipality to annex their property. Town council approved the request Monday night.
“It’s just something that needed to be done, and it was the easiest option,” said Gallant.
He said the move comes as a result of recent problems with his home’s damaged septic system.
The problem has been costly and he was facing another hefty bill, the lowest estimate of which was $15,000, to replace the septic system.
Rather than go through with the replacement, they asked the municipality if they could hook in to the town’s water and sewer systems.
The town extended water and sewer services to homes across the street from Gallant’s home several years ago. However, the area where he lives is one of several around Kensington where one side of the street is within the town boundaries while the other side is not. Gallant and Albert’s home falls in the later category, putting them technically in Kelvin Grove while their neighbours are in Kensington.
This close proximity to the system meant it was a relatively simple job to hook Gallant’s home up to the town’s services, but there was a catch.
Kensington has an as yet unwritten policy that says any household outside the town boundaries that wants to receive water/sewer services from the municipality must become part of the community.
If there is a main pipe nearby, the town will pay for the initial hookup; bringing the home into the town boundaries allows for those costs to be recouped through service fees and property taxes.
In the long-term, the town gains a taxpaying home in exchange for a relatively minor upfront expense.
Town chief administrative officer, Geoff Baker, said council decided to go this route in 2005 when it faced another request similar to Gallant’s. To his knowledge, this is only the second time the town has annexed a property in exchange for hooking it up to services.
“We feel it’s in the long-term best interest of the community. At the end of the day it’s about everyone within reasonable proximity to our town boundary contributing to the greater good of the town,” said Baker.
In addition to approving Gallant’s request to join the town, council also directed Baker to come up with a more permanent policy to deal with these types of requests.
The town must now write up a formal proposal to the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission, which will then examine the issue, hold a public meeting and ultimately send a recommendation to the provincial executive council for approval.
In the meantime, Gallant’s home has already been hooked up to municipal services.
@JournalPMacLean
