The Councillors representing Ward 5 highlighted their concerns at the Monday, June 23, 2025 Council meeting over the proposed change of direction for the town’s water source.
A presentation was made at Monday’s meeting by Jim Harnum, president of Municipal VU Consulting Inc., regarding the Public Utilities Commission Master Plan Review with a Growth Lens.
After a lengthy debate and discussion, the recommendations from Municipal administration, which were a part of the item on the agenda, were postponed to the Monday, July 14, 2025 Council meeting, after a successful motion by Wallaceburg Councillor Carmen McGregor.
“In tonight’s report, CK Chief Financial Officer Gord Quinton noted Municipal VU Consulting was hired to review and prioritize municipal water and waste water projects,” McGregor said on Monday.
“This report found misaligned growth priorities; coordination gaps; conflicting priorities; glaring infrastructure needs; and operational risks.”
Quinton and Municipal staff had made the following recommendations for Council’s consideration:
The report from Quinton says there are “conflicting priorities” as the Water and Wastewater Master Plan prioritizes the Wallaceburg Water Treatment Plant, while the Municipality prioritizes servicing Southwest Chatham, which was not considered in the Water and Wastewater Master Plan.
The following items are being recommended to be “halted” in Wallaceburg:
Among the proposed directions were to close the Wallaceburg Water Treatment facility and pipe water to Wallaceburg from Chatham / Lake Erie, and to explore using the Wallaceburg plant for water to service the greenhouse industry.
Prior to the successful motion to postpone the entire report and decision, McGregor had entered a motion, requesting the following:
– The creation of a joint PUC and Municipal group with the purpose of completing a joint Servicing Strategy that will include the new Growth Management Policies and recommendations of # 2, 3 and 4
– The new Growth Management Policies to be adopted into the Official Plan as required by the obligations under the Planning Act and Provincial Planning Statement, 2024. Setting direction about growth options and planning of the phasing of residential and non-residential development in Primary and Secondary Urban Centres.
– Engineering Design that includes estimated Capital costing after the completion of the Service Plan for the Southwest quadrant of Chatham which is currently in draft form.
– Information in a combined PUC/Municipal report that includes engagement and consultation of the community of Wallaceburg and affected surrounding areas. The consultation should include the advantages ad disadvantages of no longer following the recommendations of the earlier studies and EA’s conducted between 2012 and 2023 that recommended the rehabilitation and or replacement of Wallaceburg Water Intake and the Wallaceburg Water Treatment Plant.
“The first recommendation should be put on hold until further information can be provided to Council,” McGregor said.
“The second recommendation refers to the report provided to us by Ryan Jacques at our last meeting that addressed the urban boundaries in our communities. That report said it had completed the second phase of four. So still incomplete. The third recommendation addresses the need for more information that we did not receive before setting our priorities for this terms of council.”
McGregor added: “The fourth addresses the multiple EA’s and community engagement sessions that we are being asked to ignore. As for fifth recommendation in the report, it appears to me that Chatham-Kent administration think we need an oversight committee of the already elected officials that currently represent this council at the PUC. Personally, as the chair, I see this is an insult to each commissioner.”
McGregor also said Quinton was quoted in the media saying the review also found Chatham-Kent’s municipal administration and the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) have “often operated independently” and “lacked a unified strategy” for planning and delivering services like land use, engineering, and infrastructure investment.
“He is quoted as saying that the division has resulted in inefficiencies, missed collaboration opportunities, and inconsistent communication, adding the future growth of Chatham-Kent and its finances require a unified plan moving forward to align priorities and expectations,” McGregor added.
“The report presented to us tonight by Municipal VU Consulting says that it discovered the Water and Wastewater Master Plan (WWWMP) does not account for Southwest quadrant of Chatham. A strategic growth area identified by council. The report says its omission limits the municipality’s ability to support development and meet housing and employment targets.”
McGregor added: “The draft Southwest Chatham Servicing Study outlines over $780 million in infrastructure needs for phased growth, according to the report, in addition to the $975 million already identified in the Master Plan. The report also identifies a “lack of integration” between the PUC and Municipal Administration with no shared capital prioritization or unified servicing strategy and a need for better asset management and planning due to aging infrastructure, high water loss, and incomplete sewer separation plans.”
McGregor said “for these reasons alone” these recommendations need to be referred back to the PUC and CK administration.
“The PUC Commissioner’s received this information less than a week before and Council who was provided the information last Wednesday, one day prior to the public,” she said.
“As councillors we make some pretty big decisions based on reports provided to us. We trust that the information we receive is accurate. The presentation and the report both state the Southwest Quadrant plans as being one of Councils major priorities. Looking back how do you trust in that decision of making this a priority when we have not received correct information.”
Wallaceburg Councillor Aaron Hall echoed McGregor’s comments and supported sending the report back.
“With decisions of this magnitude, with this change of strategic direction, we need to ensure we have all the details and all of the proper information,” Hall said, adding the community needs to be “fully aware” of these potential options.
“I recall covering this topic as a reporter, prior to being on Council surrounding the 2016 EA, I recall the community of Wallaceburg, not only having concerns, but coming out in droves, attending public meetings, providing feedback and speaking passionately about maintaining the water source for the community. I also recall based in part by that near-unanimous feedback from the community, that the preferred recommendation by an EA process that took place, was changed due to the strong message, and the source was kept the same.”
Hall added: “That’s always been something that I‘ve held onto, and have spoken to people about since I’ve been on Council, I thought it was a true testament of how people’s voices matter and can impact change at the Municipal level.”
Hall also drew a comparison to “a very real and active situation” the Municipality is dealing with, in regards to the proposed Dresden dump.
“We’ve hired lawyers, we’ve rallied the community and our neighbours, we’ve invested tax payer dollars, we’re putting signs in our yards to Defend Dresden.. at the end of the day, what are we hoping for? Besides it just going away, we’re hoping for an EA process to take place,” he said.
“So, that we can ensure that our collective voices are heard. The Province is saying because of certain overarching issues, and priorities, that the dump project needs to happen, regardless of what the community says.”
Hall added: “Unfortunately, this sounds eerily similar to what we’re being asked to do tonight. And that is very frustrating. So, I wanted to illustrate that comparison and its contradictory tone. We have a lot of unanswered questions. I believe that staying true to our Council strategic direction of being an open and transparent government, points us to sending this issue back.”
Deputations will be accepted from the public on the report, which will be back before Council at their next meeting on July 14, 2025.
The full staff report can be read, here.
The Water and Wastewater Master Plan Review can be read, here.
The presentation to Council can be read, here.
