ERIN – Town of Erin staff have identified a need for three more municipal wells in Erin/Hillsburgh.
According to wastewater servicing agreements with developers, approximately 2,815 new residential units will be constructed in Erin and 1,650 units will be constructed in Hillsburgh over the next 10 to 15 years.
“Significant infrastructure upgrades will be required to accommodate this growth,” states a Feb. 13 council report.
One additional well will be located in Erin and the other two in Hillsburgh, town director of infrastructure Brian Kavanagh told council.
In November the town released three interrelated tenders for well drilling and testing as part of a program to establish future water supply sources.
The three tenders released included:
- test well and municipal well construction;
- monitoring well construction; and
- hydraulic testing for test wells and municipal wells.
The tender period closed on Dec. 5, with two bids received; one from Aardvark Drilling Inc. and the other from Highland Water Well Drilling Inc.
Town staff reviewed the submissions and determined only Aardvark’s submission was compliant.
“A thorough tender review was completed by Gemtec in association with Ainley and Associates,” states the report.
“The tender prices submitted by Aardvark were compared with an indicative pre-tender cost estimate prepared in May 2024 by Gemtec.”
The pre-tender estimate total for all three tenders was $1.5-million, with the actual cost being $1.86-million.
Project timeline
Aardvark’s schedule to complete the work is in line with town expectations and “appears reasonable,” states the report.
The total program, involving drilling and testing of test wells and municipal wells, will require approximately 11 months to complete.
“If we find a well and we want to get it into production, we’re talking 48 to 60 months roughly before all approvals are in place and we’re actually turning on a tap?” Mayor Michael Dehn asked Kavanagh.
“We’ve identified a timeline that I would suggest is a minimum of three and a half years, and more likely approaching that 48-plus (month) mark,” Kavanagh replied.
“So don’t expect these taps to be running next year,” said Dehn.
Kavanagh explained, “We have a need to proceed relatively quickly, as we can avoid retendering by awarding this contract by March 5. This is mainly related to growth in the community so that’s an important driving piece in this project.”
Financial impact
The new wells, well exploration and development programs are being funded through development charges and will primarily service new residents.
“The 2024 and 2025 water service for new capital project budgets ($8.5-million and $5-million respectively) provide adequate funding to complete the project,” the report states.
“There’s a significant benefit to the existing communities in Erin and Hillsburgh in the sense that we will have a more robust drinking water system and one that can withstand any potential challenges in the future,” Kavanagh told council.
Council unanimously approved awarding the contract to Aardvark.
