The Region of Queens has lifted voluntary water conservation measures for residents in Liverpool and parts of Brooklyn. (0xCoffe via Pixabay)
Municipal water customers in Liverpool and Brooklyn don’t have to worry about tightening their taps.
The Region of Queens announced Wednesday afternoon that it has lifted voluntary water conservation measures that residents and businesses were under since early November.
The region said in a news release that recent rainfall has restored the Town Lake Reservoir to appropriate levels.
The reservoir is still not at full capacity, the region says, but there is enough water so that people don’t have to worry about watching their consumption.
Earlier in the day, Mayor Scott Christian told QCCR that the region has been working with officials in the provincial Emergency Management Office to look for ways to replenish the reservoir if needed.
“There are alternatives and secondary water sources that we could access water from if push came to shove, but they’re not potable.”
Christian says using those sources would only be a last resort if they needed to feed the system.
But people who rely on the region’s water utility don’t have to worry about that for now.
If water levels drop again, the region says it will notify users through ads on local radio stations, including QCCR, posts on the region’s Facebook and Twitter accounts and on its website.
Queens regional councillors are looking for ways to help prevent more water crises in the region. (Henryk Niestroj via Pixabay)
While residents and businesses in the Liverpool area are being asked to cut back on water, Region of Queens councillors want to find ways to improve communication and deal with any future water shortages.
Last week, councillors asked for a comprehensive staff report on the region’s water and wastewater systems. They also want staff to develop a communication system to inform customers quickly when problems arise.
Municipal water users in Liverpool and parts of Brooklyn have been asked since Nov. 1 to restrict their water usage.
Water levels in the Town Lake Reservoir are too low to support the town’s usual consumption.
The region has warned people that without significant amounts of rain, more drastic measures may have to be taken.
Mayor Scott Christian said it’s important to investigate longer-term solutions.
“It has appropriately alarmed a lot of our residents and a number of members of council as well,” Christian said.
“So I think it’s appropriate that we ask those questions in terms of how are we going to avoid situations like this in the future. What’s our Plan B? How can we make sure that we do all we can to protect against known or foreseeable risks to the stability or the dependence of our water supply?”
Other councillors said they were also worried how the water supply could be affected if the Liverpool Fire Department needs to respond to a fire.
Liverpool fire chief Trevor Munroe could not be reached for comment Monday.
District 3 Coun. Courtney Wentzell said the region needs to address problems with its existing infrastructure.
“I think we’ve got an infrastructure problem on the west side of Liverpool from the town well to Union Street. This is very, very serious. We need to know what Plan B is, we need to look ahead and we need to look after people that already hooked up before we start hooking up new.”
The region has been criticized in the past for its efforts at spreading the word about water problems.
But some businesses and residents complained that they didn’t know about it until days after the order was issued.
People were also upset at what they saw as a lack of transparency about the reasons for the order.
Deputy Mayor Maddie Charlton said residents and businesses need to be informed more quickly and more directly.
“I’m also running into a lot of residents who are unaware that they’re supposed to decrease their water usage right now, so I think that this is critical that this happen so that residents can be alerted when needed in a very quick manner.”
CAO Cody Joudry could not give councillors a timeline for when staff will complete their report.
The Region of Queens released this graphic on Friday morning to illustrate water levels in the Town Lake Reservoir (Credit: Region of Queens Municipality)
UPDATED Nov. 22 at 10:15 a.m.
The Region of Queens is asking its municipal water users to cut their consumption in half.
The municipality first sounded the alarm on Nov. 1 about dropping water levels in the Town Lake Reservoir.
Since then, the situation has only worsened. Officials say people have not reduced their water use enough to deal with the lack of rainfall.
The area has received only about 45 millimetres of rain since the first of October. CAO Cody Joudry told QCCR last week that the region would need at least 50 mm of rain a week to improve things.
For the past few weeks, the region has appealed to the 1,400 residential and commercial water utility customers in Liverpool and Brooklyn to conserve water.
Mayor Scott Christian told QCCR on Thursday that the newest advisory was necessary because water levels continue to drop.
“We’ve just continued on the same trajectory towards a situation we don’t want to find ourselves in. The updated (communications) strategy is around giving people a target to work toward to manage their own consumption or water conservation efforts.”
The region released more information on Friday morning, explaining the current water levels in more detail, including a graphic to illustrate.
“At full capacity, the Town Lake Reservoir has a maximum depth of nine feet above the water intake pipe,” according to the release. “Currently, the water level stands at six feet. If levels reach five feet, it triggers the Warning Level, where reduced water pressure could impact the entire system. While the system is operating at lower pressure, it remains functional.”
Some people who commented on the region’s latest post on Facebook said they’re frustrated with the region’s efforts to put the word out.
Christian said he understands people’s discontent. He said council plans to discuss the region’s long-term water plans and better communication with residents at their meeting on Monday evening.
“I think those are all good and fair questions to be asking right now. … It’s something that members of the council definitely take seriously. The things that we need to right now right now, is we need to conserve water right now.”
People also wondered why the municipality is flushing some fire hydrants in certain areas. Christian said he appreciates people pointing that out, but said they need to do that to avoid contaminating the water supply. Still, he said officials will look at ways to limit the flow of water from those hydrants.
The region also responded on Friday morning to concerns about the hydrant flushing.
“These ‘flusher locations’ are essential to maintain water quality throughout the system,” the release said. “The municipality has reduced flushing rates from 40 to under 5 gallons per minute to conserve water while ensuring safe potable water distribution.”
Christian told QCCR on Thursday that the best thing to do is for all users to cut their consumption as much as possible.
“But what’s most important urgently right now is to try our best as a community to conserve water as much as possible.”
Municipal water users have dealt with frustration before. Controversy over an eight-week boil water order in the summer of 2023 forced the Queens water utility to give customers a one-time break on their bills.
Other water utilities across the province are also struggling with dwindling water supply. The Halifax region issued water conservation notices last week.
The Region of Queens is asking people to take shorter showers and take baths less often. Flush toilets only when necessary, reduce the number of times you do laundry or dishes, fix leaky pipes and report any suspected leaks in water lines to the municipality at 902-354-7170.
The region says its 1,400 water utility customers must use less water because the municipality’s Town Lake reservoir is getting dangerously low.
Queens CAO Cody Joudry said Thursday that he hopes residents and businesses co-operate.
“I wouldn’t call it at a critical level, however it’s been heading that way for a while,” he said.
“It is continuing to go down at this point. It’s definitely getting worse so that’s why we really want to talk to the public and encourage them to actively try to conserve water.”
Mayor Scott Christian was not available for an interview Thursday. But he did post this video on his Facebook page Thursday afternoon appealing to municipal water users to cut their consumption.
Queens County has had very little rain this fall. According to Environment Canada, the area had only 30.1 millimetres of precipitation in October. So far, only 4.1 mm has fallen in November.
Joudry says the area needs to get at least 50 mm a week to replenish the reservoir to comfortable levels.
In their latest update, the municipality says if the situation worsens, they may have to begin mandatory conservation measures. Failure to follow those could result in fines and having your water cut off.
“Overall we’re not seeing a lot of decreased usage,” he said. “Those that are conserving water, we appreciate it. And those that aren’t, we are asking them to take it seriously and take immediate action … that people actively and consciously and deliberately take steps immediately to use less water than they were last week, than they were the week before that and the week before that. … We don’t want it to be dire.”
Joudry says the region has had worse water levels in the past. The reservoir isn’t yet at the low levels experienced in 1992, 1994 or 2001.
“When we get down to those levels, we’re implementing mandatory water conservation. And if people aren’t adhering to those rules, there could be tickets or disconnections and we don’t’ want to get to that point.”
Joudry said it’s difficult to say how close the region is to enacting more severe measures. But he said if things don’t improve in the next two to three weeks, it may come to that.
“I remain hopeful that usage goes down and rain occurs. Maybe more than one day of hard rain would be great.”
Joudry said he has reached out to the region’s Top 10 largest water consumers to explain the situation and ask them to start conserving water immediately.
“I don’t want to put all the weight or the onus on them. Everyone needs to do their fair share.”
The region did not do a baseline measurement of individual water usage when they first identified the problem about three weeks ago. But Joudry said officials are discussing ways to judge whether specific residents and businesses are using less water.
And he said they don’t plan yet to contact users directly. He said he hopes the municipality’s updates on social media and on radio will get the message across.
“I’m not sure at this point what we can do at this point, other than a door knocking campaign. It may come to that. For example, if we get to mandatory conservation measures, there might be letters that go out and door knocking.”
Joudry said he understands that conservation efforts will be different for everybody, depending on what their needs are.
Some of the things you can do to reduce your water usage include: reduce the frequency of flushing toilets; do fewer loads of dishes and laundry; stop washing vehicles; take shorter showers; turn off taps when not in use while showering or brushing your teeth; and fix any leaks or dripping faucets.
And if you have a suspected leak in your water line, contact the municipality at 902-354-7170.
Kim Masland, Queens MLA and Nova Scotia’s public works minister, announces $10.7 million in provincial funding for a $21.5-million water and sewer expansion that gives the green light to two new housing developments in the Liverpool area. (Rick Conrad)
The Nova Scotia government and the Region of Queens are teaming up on a $21.5-million project to extend and improve water and sewer services in the Liverpool area.
Queens MLA Kim Masland on Monday announced $10.7 million in provincial funding to expand water and wastewater service to the Mount Pleasant area. The region will pitch in $10.8 million.
The project means that two new private housing developments will go ahead on more than 60 acres of land. About 325 new housing units will be built for up to 1,200 people. It will be a mix of sold and rented space. About a third of those units could be affordable housing.
Masland, who is also Nova Scotia’s public works minister, made the announcement at the region’s municipal offices in Liverpool on behalf of John Lohr, the minister of municipal affairs and housing.
“We need this funding, we know our community’s growing, we certainly need affordable and more housing stock within our community,” she said in an interview after the announcement.
“We’re attracting people to our community every day, there are med professionals that want to come here. This is a great project. This will allow us to build more houses.”
Masland said a municipal housing needs assessment found that Queens County needs 555 more housing units by the end of 2027. She said it’s difficult to recruit health care staff to move to the area if there’s nowhere to live.
“We need people building faster. We need homes up, we need places for people to live. We are in a housing crisis in the province and we’re going to do whatever we can to make sure we can help.”
The funding will also improve existing water and sewer services to more than 1,200 homes and businesses in the area, and help improve the amount of water available for firefighting efforts.
Region of Queens Mayor Darlene Norman emphasized that the funding will do more than help developers build new homes.
She said the current infrastructure is at or over capacity. The project will improve service for residents in Liverpool, Brooklyn and Milton.
“There are some really crucial repairs that need to be made to our system, so it can expand in all directions. This is not case-specific for specific people.”
The provincial portion of the funding comes from the $102-million Municipal Capital Growth Program. The region applied in December for the funding.
Norman said the region’s finance staff are working now to figure out how the municipal portion will be funded. The region is currently working on its 2024/25 budget.
Adam Grant, the region’s director of engineering and public works, said Monday he hopes the work will be finished in 24 to 36 months.
“So work is already underway. Following the feasibility study, we’ve migrated into some design work preliminary and that’s underway right now, looking at having designs rolled out in the fall and construction starting in the next 12 months ideally.”
The developers behind the two housing projects said Monday they were excited by the news. They’ve lobbied the municipality for the past few years to extend water and sewer services to those areas.
Both projects are near downtown Liverpool.
Larry Cochrane plans an 87-unit development on the old Dauphinee Farm property near Queens General Hospital, which would include a 24-unit apartment building.
He said he will soon begin the design phase of the project.
“I wish it was faster of course, but we’ll take that because there’s lots of work I need to do to get ready to start a project like this.”
Graham van der Pas is a partner with Rumclo Developments. They plan a three-stage development on about 30 acres of land farther up the road from Cochrane’s project.
“We’re very, very excited. We’ve been lobbying for this for the past two years. So it’s amazing.”
The Rumclo development will feature The Point, which will have 124, two-bedroom homes for sale, The Curve, with 22 three-bedroom townhouses, and Birchwood Gardens, 82 affordable rental apartments. Van der Pas said the affordable rentals will be 80 per cent of the median market rate. A one-bedroom would be about $800 a month, a two-bedroom $1,000 and a three-bedroom would rent for $1,200.
A section of The Curve will also be reserved for staff from Queens General Hospital to rent.
“I think a community like this needs it,” van der Pas said.
“I think what our developments will bring to the town is … a significant amount of property taxes. The revenue will go up there, the economic revenue of people potentially starting businesses, new patrons for the businesses that are already existing. It’s significant.”
Ashley Christian, president of the South Queens Chamber of Commerce, said she’s happy that such a big investment is being made in Queens.
“We have been advocating through the chamber of commerce for more housing for a couple of years. So we’re so excited to see this huge investment, especially made by the municipality, really impressed by that.”
Christian said she’s especially happy that half the funding is coming from the province. She said she hopes that means the project won’t be a big burden on municipal taxpayers.
Rumclo Developments Ltd proposed Birchwood Gardens and The Curve communities. Photo from Rumclo Developments Ltd, Region of Queens Agenda package
A new affordable housing development in Liverpool hinges on whether the municipality is ready to extend water and sewer services along Shore Rd.
Rumclo Development Ltd is proposing to build 92 units of affordable housing between Shore Rd and College St in a community they’re calling Birchwood Gardens.
The apartments will be a mix of 1, 2 and 3 bedrooms ranging from 650ft2 to 1,000ft2.
Rent is projected to range between $696 and $1,200/month, depending on construction costs.
During their presentation at the most recent Region of Queens Council meeting on June 13, Rumclo officials expressed frustration that they have yet to see a study that will determine if municipal water and sewer can be extended.
Rumclo has requested the service extension for another development they’re proposing further along Shore Rd called “The Point”.
The presentation also included a development called “The Curve” which would sit adjacent to Birchwood Gardens affordable housing project.
The Curve will see 22 two and three bedroom 1,500ft2 townhouses built that would sell between $400,000 and $500,000 and rent at approximately $2,000/month.
They developers argue the new proposed developments can piggyback off the same lines that will service “The Point”.
Rumclo developer Chad Clothier says they’ve already lost this building season and are eager to learn if they will have the water and sewer extensions so they can plan to build in 2024.
“Ask the Region why the study isn’t coming back or what the hold up to the study is and it really makes it hard as a company to feel like we can get this project done if a simple study is taking this long to come back,” said Clothier. “So, we’d really like to get some insight on the study.”
Region of Queens Interim CAO Dan McDougall was sympathetic to the developer’s time pressures but explained determining if the municipality can extend those services is not a simple matter.
“It’s actually far more complex than just extensions,” said McDougall. “Extensions are one element of what we’ll likely receive back from the consultants. They’ll also provide insight on how the system needs to be improved in order to accept volumes, both water and wastewater.”
McDougall says the existing wastewater treatment plant has the capacity to handle the increased number of users but getting the flow to the plant will require significant upgrades to the underground infrastructure.
The CAO says the study is also looking at how providing municipal water to the developments will affect the existing system.
“You can get water to the lands that you’re proposing to develop but what are the implications on the rest of the system?” asked McDougall. “Will it result in negative water pressure in other areas of the municipality where improvements are required in order for the extensions to work for your project, but to work for the rest of the community as well. So, it’s not a simple study.”
McDougall expects the final engineering report to come to staff and council for review in the next few weeks.
It will then be a month or two before it will be presented to council for a decision whether the project will go ahead.
Residents of Liverpool who rely on the Cowie well for water will have to look elsewhere for now.
During weekly testing, the Region of Queens discovered the presence of coliform bacteria and has temporarily closed the well.
Regulations from Nova Scotia Environment say the water must pass three consecutive tests before the well can be reopened.
According to Region of Queens Mayor Darlene Norman, the soonest the water could be available may be late next week as there must be three days between each test and the testing facility is closed over the weekend.
The municipality suggests anyone concerned about water they have recently taken from the well to dispose of it.
Norman says the municipality has provided bottled water in the past when dry conditions have impacted resident’s wells but won’t be doing so for this temporary well closure as there is plenty of water to go around.
“I would suggest that they reach out to a neighbour or a friend who has good clean water,” said Norman.
The Region of Queens will notify residents once the testing is complete and the Cowie Well is once again cleared for use.
The proposed site for the new library at Queens Place lies at the end of the driveway beside the sledding hill. Photo Ed Halverson
Members of the Astor theatre want permission to pursue grants for a new air conditioning system and councillors are concerned about ballooning costs for the new library at Queens place.
The late additions made for an exciting agenda at Tuesday’s Region of Queens council meeting.
The meeting got underway with presentations from the property valuation services corporation or PVSC. The organization explained how they assess properties before providing that information to municipalities to use when collecting property tax.
The next presentation was an update from the recreation and healthy communities department.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, members of the Astor Theatre made their case for why they want permission to install air conditioning. They say climate change has led to uncomfortably high temperatures during the summer months making the space an unsafe work environment. Because the Astor Theatre is a tenant in the Town Hall Arts and Cultural Centre, they need permission from the municipality to make any changes.
During the recommendation portion of the agenda councillors approved the placement, design, and size of the new outdoor pool which is proposed to be built alongside Queens Place. Council also took the extraordinary step of allowing the pool committee to research and write grants on behalf of the municipality. Grants will still need to be reviewed, approved and submitted by municipal staff.
A study on the feasibility of servicing two new proposed subdivisions in Mount Pleasant will go ahead. Councillors approved spending up to $21,000 for CBCL engineering to undertake a six-week study to determine if there is the capacity to handle water and wastewater flow and demand to the proposed developments. The results of that study are expected to come back to council sometime in April.
Next, councillors debated and ultimately approved the Astor Theatre’s request to apply for grants to install air conditioning. We’ll have more on this story in the coming days.
Eight items were on the agenda for the discussion portion of the meeting.
Council received updates on their implementation report and a financial review for the third quarter.
The province of Nova Scotia is conducting an economic study on the ferry service from Maine to Nova Scotia and approached municipalities in southern Nova Scotia for feedback on the evaluation criteria.
Council was informed environmental documents pertaining to the Mersey River wind farm project can be viewed at the regional administration office and the Thomas Raddall library. The project includes plans to install 35 wind turbines on the site.
Council then discussed property tax exemptions and set a date of March 3rd to begin discussing their 2023-24 budget.
The South Queens Chamber of Commerce asked the Region to assume responsibility for the hanging flower baskets on display on posts in Liverpool. Council discussed taking on the project but determined in fairness, it should be expanded to include Caledonia as well. Staff will investigate the specifics of the request and bring a report back to council.
Finally, council discussed the construction of the new library at Queens Place.
Around the table councillors say they’ve been hearing concerns from residents that the Region has not looked for other sources of funding for the project. Some also feel the location at Queens Place was misrepresented as the best option.
Councillors who had opposed siting the new library at Queens Place dropped their opposition when they believed it would be the most cost-effective option. During the discussion it was revealed the construction of the road and other infrastructure leading to the library could add over $900,000 to the cost.
Council will be looking for staff to provide more information and a clearer accounting of all costs when the library is brought back for discussion at the next meeting.
That meeting will take place Tuesday February 28th at 6:00 PM in council chambers.
