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New Tecumseth to enter water management talks with province

April 26, 2017   ·   0 Comments

By Eric Penkala
New Tecumseth councillors voted to have the town participate in provincial discussions regarding the possibility of entering into a Simcoe County-run water and waste water agreement.
The vote occurred during an April 10 council session after a long discussion period between the councillors. Beeton Councillor Richard Norcross expressed his disapproval of entering said discussions, saying the town would “lose absolutely all control” of its water and waste water management if such a deal were agreed to.
“We have our own issues that we’re dealing with,” said Norcross. “We’re controlling our own destiny, and we’ll be able to make the important decisions when it comes to allocations here.”
Norcross spoke specifically of the project to extend the Collingwood pipeline to Tottenham, and his desire to not see that project be delayed any further.
Deputy Mayor Jamie Smith noted to Norcross that the town was only looking to start discussions with Simcoe County on how to fix its water supply issues, not to necessarily agree to a county-run water management system.
“We’re not talking about a county-wide wastewater or water system. We’re talking about what the county can do to facilitate some of the problems that exist in the county,” said Smith.
Councillor J.J. Paul Whiteside agreed the discussions would be beneficial to the town, and said that such an agreement would help the town to manage its provincial debt capacity, which he pointed out is “getting very, very thin.” He also stressed the importance of hearing new opinions on the town’s water issues.
“There may be no benefits, there may be benefits, and I think we would be negligent if we didn’t enter into those discussions,” said Whiteside.
Still, Norcross expressed his fear that under a county-run water system, the town’s needs would fall “further down the food chain,” with Simcoe County being unwilling to pay for water projects.
“I have a hard time believing the county will take on all that debt to help out poor, little New Tecumseth,” said Norcross.
Stressing the desire to seek out all possible options, council voted 8-2 in favour of entering the discussions, with Norcross and Tottenham Councillor Chris Ross voting in the minority.

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