City staff will look for city council's approval at the Feb. 9 meeting to move forward with an industrial land infrastructure strategy.
A report prepared by city staff for council identified “a number of industrial areas facing municipal infrastructure challenges such as inadequate fire flows and water capacity, and a lack of downstream wastewater capacity.”
According to the report, the review not only identifies infrastructure challenges, but also provides an “analysis of the current and potential future economic value of the industrial sector from a tax base and employment perspective.”
In 2009, the Greater Sudbury Development Corporation (GSDC) and city council decided to start a review of underserviced industrial areas within the city. At that time, city council approved the allocation of funds from the city's Industrial Land Reserve Fund toward the review.
The GSDC, with the assistance of R.V. Anderson Associates Limited, assessed the extent and work and associated costs to accommodate existing and future industrial development. Eight areas within the city were reviewed with a focus on water and sanitary sewer servicing.
Only two sites had sufficient water access for industrial use, and none of them had adequate sewer access. The cost to upgrade the sites ranged between $400,000 and close to $40 million. The future budget impacts will be presented to council “after a more comprehensive decision making framework is developed and on a project-by-project basis.”
The topic of serviced industrial lands came forward at the Jan. 31 public budget meeting. During that meeting André Dumais, chair of the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce, said the city needs to look at the availability of property serviced industrial lands.
“The chamber is strongly recommending council make this a priority this term,” he said. “There's no doubt that a sound, industrial land strategy will provide significant economic value to our community.”
After the meeting, Mayor Marianne Matichuk told Northern Life the city is looking at industrial lands to see where there's potential for growth.
“If we service those industrial lands then we'll be able to attract businesses and if we attract those businesses we're going to get jobs,” she said. “It's one of the key components that we need in order for growth.”
Sites and projected cost to upgrade water and sewer:
- Fielding Road - $39.3M (water: $9.3M, sewer: $9M - $30M+)
- Lasalle/Elisabella - $5.9M (water: $4.3M, sewer: $1.6M)
- National Street - $1.2M (water: $0.9M, sewer: $0.3M)
- Maley/Falconbridge: $2.05M (water: $0.9M, sewer: $1.15M)
- Valley East - $2.4M (water: $0.8M, sewer: $1.4M)
- Coniston – no figure released (water: substandard, sewer: some capacity available)
- Radisson - $0.4M (water: available, sewer: $0.4M)
- Kingsway – no figure released (water: available, sewer: not available subject to future sewer Class environmental assessment)
- Kelly Lake - $1.8M (water: $1.8M, sewer: by developer)
