Heather Wright/The Independent

Homeowners in Alvinston and Inwood will soon notice a new charge on their tax bill.

Brooke-Alvinston council has agreed in principle to a new stormwater management fee for the communities.

Mayor David Ferguson says after a recent council meeting where rural residents came to talk about the cost of drainage, he realized there is a drain which runs through urban areas as well but urban taxpayers are never charged for the work. 

“Why is the general taxes pay for it in town where the landowners out there having to pay for their own drains?” he told council Jan. 22.

Ferguson says other communities, including Enniskillen, have charges for stormwater management in urban areas.

And he noted homeowners in Alvinston and Inwood already pay for urban services such as streetlights and garbage collection.

Treasurer Stephen Ikert says in the last few years, the municipality has spent over $2.5 million on urban stormwater and its infrastructure. “More stormwater infrastructure improvements are needed and planned for the coming years. Meanwhile, the taxes collected in these urban areas are insufficient to cover theses expenses,” he writes in a report to council. “So rural residents end up sharing in these costs.”

Council agreed to look at a system similar to the fees for streetlights where council sets an annual amount to be raised and the amount each property would pay would be based on assessed value. Properties with higher assessments would pay more, and commercial and industrial operations would pay more than residential property owners.

“All the revenue would be placed in a dedicated stormwater fund and used solely for stormwater related purposes.”

Ikert says the area ratings are easy to administer and would be easy for residents to understand, since they already see the fees on their taxes. 

Staff will put together a bylaw for council’s approval.