Infrastructure grants denied for Enderby

By Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star - May 07, 2008

The City of Enderby has lost out on major grants for infrastructure improvements. Council was notified Monday that requests for water and sewer treatment projects were turned down by the federal and provincial governments. “I guess they can’t give all of their money to the city and they have to spread it around,” said Mayor Sue Phillips of the fact that Enderby has received grants before. The total price tag for the sewer improvements is $1.4 million, and it was hoped the provincial and federal governments would pick up two-thirds of the costs. Work on the water treatment plant would have also been about $1.4 million. Council was told Monday that the Canada/B.C. Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund received more applications than money exists. “This decision does not reflect on the importance of these projects but rather the degree by which the program has been oversubscribed,” states a letter from the federal and provincial governments. Both the sewer and water projects are designed to meet the city’s future needs, and they will be postponed because of the lack of senior government funding. “It’s not critical right now but with new subdivisions going in, it’s something we will have to look at,” said Phillips of the projects. “To accommodate growth, we need the infrastructure.”However, Enderby has a largely residential tax base and it’s difficult for the community to pay for major capital works on its own.“We are dependent on funding grants,” said Phillips.“There are granting opportunities all of the time, so we will just keep at it (applying).”While there is no help for sewer and water, the city will receive federal/provincial assistance for road upgrades in the Cliff View Street. Of the $1.8 million price tag, the senior governments are providing $1.2 million for the project.