Fort Erie is facing an infrastructure gap of $29.2 million. Pictured: Fort Erie Mayor Wayne Redekop. Photo Credit: Town of Fort Erie.
The newly-released asset management plan for the Town of Fort Erie, prepared by GEI Consultants, indicates Fort Erie is facing an infrastructure gap of $29.2 million. An infrastructure gap is the gap between what a town presently spends on infrastructure and what needs to be spent in order to maintain working order standards. The plan also points to a $250-million infrastructure backlog, as well as a $2.16 billion total replacement value for the town’s assets.
The 11 categories of asset replacement values are listed from greatest to least: roads ($536.9 million), storm water ($401 million), wastewater ($392 million), water ($371 million), facilities ($214 million), natural assets ($115.7 million), bridges and culvers ($62 million), parks and cemeteries ($36. 7 million), emergency services ($14 million) fleet ($13 million) and digital services ($3 million). The current state of town assets, in general, is considered to be fair, meaning that not all resources are in need of imminent replacement. Approximately 44 per cent of assets are considered to be in good/very good order, while 28 per cent are below this threshold and are considered poor/very poor.
While the numbers may appear stark, Mayor Wayne Redekop believes that the challenges that Fort Erie is facing are similar to those being endured by cities and towns across Ontario.
“My question would be what is happening in the more than 400 other provincial municipalities? It is probably ugly,” Redekop shared with The Niagara Independent. “Look at what’s going on in Toronto with stormwater management… when we have extreme conditions, and the infrastructure doesn’t accommodate the weather, it has to be dealt with, and sometimes you have to add to existing infrastructure rather than just repairing it.”
Redekop said that extraordinary events have complicated the ability of Fort Erie to complete infrastructure projects.
“Fort Erie has been well ahead of the curve in taking various steps to deal with aging and faltering infrastructure,” said Redekop. “As we emerged from the pandemic, however, the realities of skyrocketing inflation, which has been particularly pronounced in the construction sector (30-40%), has made it extremely difficult to not fall behind.”
The $29.2 million infrastructure gap, Redekop explained, is something that the Fort Erie will not fill on its own.
“We need more data, and we don’t have the money,” said Redekop. “$29.2 million represents the vast majority of our general tax levy, and we won’t be funding all of these initiatives out of everyone’s tax dollars.”
Going forward, the Town plans to access provincial and federal funding, as it becomes available, in order to help address arising infrastructural needs, while working to minimize the impact on the municipal taxpayer.
“We really need the provincial and federal governments to step up to help municipalities in meeting infrastructure needs,” Redekop argued. “While marginal municipal tax increases are necessary in order to remain competitive and keep up with inflation, residents and property owners cannot be expected to bear this burden on their own.”
In spite of the complexity of the situation, Redekop remains optimistic that Fort Erie is well positioned to meet current and future infrastructural challenges.
“It’s not great news, but the challenges we face are not unique to us, and we’re in much better shape, and better prepared than most municipalities.”
