The mayor of St. Clair Township says a recent provincial investment of $33.8 million, under the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund, will cover most of the cost for the Courtright Wastewater Treatment Plant expansion project.
“I’m extremely pleased that the Ontario government is making these significant investments in the future development of Sarnia-Lambton,” said Sarnia-Lambton MPP Bob Bailey. “Sarnia-Lambton is primed for growth and economic investment, this funding from the province will ensure that we are building a Sarnia-Lambton [where] everyone can find an affordable home and good paying career.”
The water treatment plant expansion is expected to create system capacity for 624 new housing units, as well as future economic and industrial investments.
Mayor Jeff Agar said the expansion project has been discussed for a few years but the need became more crucial once Diageo announced plans in 2022 to build a production facility in St. Clair Township.
"They're going to tie into [the system] and that's going to fill our space up to probably 90 per cent," Agar said.
Agar said the project is expected to cost around $45 million and the province's funding announcement comes at a "perfect" time.
"We pretty much have the [environmental assessments] done and engineering [designs] we're working on. It's pretty close to being ready to go," Agar said. "We haven't tendered yet but that will be the next step."
Agar said he hopes the federal government will cover the remaining project costs.
"I want to really thank our MPP Bob Bailey. He worked really hard for us, and the Minister of Infrastructure Kinga Surma, and Premier Doug Ford," said Agar. "He really stepped up for the province. It's pretty easy to talk and say you're there to invest in infrastructure but this proves that we can believe a little bit of it."
The province also announced a $7.89 million investment for the City of Sarnia to proceed with its Wellington Street extension project, with regards to Development Area 2 (DA2). The city's largest greenfield space — bounded by London Line, Blackwell Side Road, Confederation Line, and Modeland Road — was identified in 2022 as a means to accommodate future growth.
The infrastructure investment from the province is expected to support 2,775 housing units in DA2.
"So what this project will allow us to do is extend Wellington Street and the related sewer/water infrastructure from where it terminates now, up to Blackwell Side Road, which will really open up DA2 for developers to move in and start constructing," said City of Sarnia Communications Manager Steve Henschel.
Henschel said at this point, the project is still in the initial phase of beginning environmental assessments and speaking with area property owners.
"Given the size of the project it's about $20 million. It will have to be included as part of our annual budget process probably in 2025 and 2026. It's a big project so it'll probably be a multi-phased approach," Henschel said. "The [nearly] $8 million goes a long way to offset some of those costs and we'll be identifying how we're going to fund that in the future."
In the meantime, city officials thanked the province for the financial support.
The province said intake for the second round of applications will involve an additional $250 million through the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund.