Grant dollars aid in water tower repainting

WELLINGTON NORTH – The Mount Forest water tower will be receiving a new coat of paint following the township’s successful application to the water/wastewater portion of the Canada Infrastructure Program.

Taxpayer dollars from the federal-provincial grant will cover $826,795, or 73 per cent, of the total $1.12 million cost to recoat the interior and exterior of the tower.

The township will pay for the remaining 27%, working out to $300,704.

Township staff, with assistance from a consultant, will prepare a tender for the project this year, with sandblasting and painting anticipated to occur next year in the springtime, according to interim CAO and operations director Matthew Aston.

The job will likely take between two and four months to complete.

During a July 11 township council meeting, Aston said the true cost of the work is likely to increase above the predicted $1.12 million cost, based on inflation, but to what degree won’t be known until the tender goes out.

Whatever the increase, the township will have to pick up the tab because the provincial-federal grant contribution is fixed.

Reporter