Kinkora builds for the future

Investing in Infrastructure -

Kinkora is becoming a better place to live – and a safer place to walk – thanks to governments working together.

The community of 300-plus residents is getting some 800 metres of new sewer mains and 750 metres of storm main, which has transformed its capacity to safely handle waste water from homes and businesses. At the same time, the community can now better disperse rain and melting snow with its new storm water system.

Community chair Patrick Duffy said many residents were complaining about the 1965-era water system, which had reached the end of its life span and was causing blockages in many homes. Newly built duplexes and triplexes for seniors added to the strain on the wastewater system, which was also installed in the ‘60s.

“A lot of our work was doing maintenance and trying to manage problems in a system that wasn’t up to the job anymore,” Duffy said. “We had a scan of it carried out, and it was clear that the sewer system just couldn’t be kept going.”

Under the Clean Water and Wastewater Fund (CWWF), the Government of Canada contributed $669,000, the Government of Prince Edward Island contributed $335,000, and Kinkora itself contributed $335,000 to a project worth $1.34 million.

The water and wastewater work also allowed for new curbs and sidewalks to be built through Kinkora extending to its eastern limits, making roads wider and the traveling safer for people walking Kinkora’s streets.

Duffy said the funding from both governments – the CWWF support paired with a provincial HST rebate – allowed the project to proceed.

 “It needed to happen, but it couldn’t have been done if we were paying $1.4 million for it,” Duffy said. “Those programs allowed us to work with contractors to get this work done.”