King councillors were thoroughly updated about the Nobleton Sanitary Sewer project at their July 6 meeting.

The recommendation council received from staff was to proceed with the detail design of a sanitary sewer system for the remainder of Nobleton and issue a request for proposal for engineering services.

Council was also provided results of the public information centre held at the local arena June 15. The purpose of that meeting was to outline the latest proposal and collect feedback from the area residents on it, as well as the timing and extent of the servicing. Staff proposed a three-phase program over 15 years. The stated costs were based on 2008 estimates and then were inflated five per cent per year based on the timing of the phases.

Staff proposed a method of assessment for cost recovery based on the design flow rates for a residential unit equivalent (RUE). The first would involve a mandatory servicing payment applied to all properties in the community. This would include a payment invoice to one collection system commissioned, with payment options to be similar to practices used in the past, such as lump-sum payments, payments with taxes and allowances for special financial circumstances.

The feedback staff got was that close to two-thirds of Nobleton would like to move forward with the project. The issue of mandatory hookup was more divided, with a little more than half of respondents favouring a mandatory connection bylaw.

Some people have said that their septic systems were fine and they didn't want an added cost of the municipal system. Others were in favour of the newer system and thought it should be done as soon as possible. Regarding the costs, many said that servicing should be done now to minimize extended disruption and cost increases over the years. Some said developers should pay more or funding is needed to offset costs.

Councillor Cleve Mortelliti said he was happy to see this recommendation because it meant there was a proper sewer design.

Councillor Jeff Laidlaw said there are no major problems with the understanding of the commitment that can apply for funding.