Tay Township received its 2025 asset management plan update, with council looking to make their ‘good’ rating into something better for the years ahead.
Presented by financial analyst Emma Whiteside, the 2025 update was the latest marker in a series of provincial requirements since 2019 to have municipalities stay on top of their aging infrastructure. Previous reports dealt with setting a strategic policy before unveiling the status of core and other assets.
“Each component interacts and informs the others,” explained Whiteside during a recent council meeting. “The system works better as more information is added, as a system asset management is about planning how to deliver the services while minimizing risk and managing costs effectively.”
The presentation looked at: proposed levels of service for all township assets; strategies for lifecycle activities of maintenance, rehabilitation and replacement; and financial strategies to fund those levels of service throughout the next 10 years.
“There is a total replacement cost of $394 million,” said Whiteside. “Average asset condition is good (70 per cent) and the service trend arrow indicates an overall downward trend, reflecting current funding levels and declining asset conditions.
“Also of note based on available condition data: approximately 31 per cent of current assets will require replacement or substantial rehabilitation in the next 10 years.”
Four scenarios were computed over a hundred-year span to ensure all lifecycles would be represented. The chosen recommendation was for future councils to aim for a target condition of ‘good’ (at 60-to-80 per cent), which would require annual capital requirement funding of roughly $8 million to accomplish.
However, the current funding of Tay Township benchmarked at 48 per cent, and so to meet the target levels, a proposed financial strategy was for the approximate 20 per cent increase to phase in over a long-range span, with a 2 per cent increase over 10 years as the recommendation.
Water and wastewater funding requirements were also looked at in the presentation with similar required increases to funding.
“The township will be undertaking a comprehensive inventory review, condition assessments, and a rate study, with completion anticipated by 2028,” said Whiteside, with results to be integrated into the asset management plan and capital planning.
Whiteside concluded by stating: “Asset management planning is an ongoing process and the asset management plan is a living document; it is expected to regularly review and update the plan and reflect changing needs, new technologies, and emerging challenges.”
Deputy Mayor Barry Norris noted new infrastructure, such as the replacement of infrastructure like the Old Fort bridge repair, could change the data of the asset management plan; Whiteside confirmed that it would.
“A lot of our financial metrics are based on the condition of the assets,” replied Whiteside, “so when you dispose of an asset that is in poor-or-lesser condition and you replace it with an asset that is in a good condition, it’s going to change the financial replacement costs.”
Council voted to adopt the plan, with mayoral consideration (through strong mayor powers) to be given during subsequent budgets.
Following the meeting, Mayor Ted Walker told MidlandToday what the asset management plan meant for the average resident.
“It’s just something that the province enacted to ensure that municipal councils were considering replacement of assets, and not waiting until – for example, three trucks break down and you’ve got no money – to fund them through reserves or whatever,” said Walker.
Walker added the township’s reserves were in “pretty good shape, and we plan to keep it that way”, but noted that stalled funding for Phase 2 of the Victoria Harbour wastewater treatment plant was an “issue that we’re trying to get resolved, and the actual amount for it would be reduced by any grant that we may receive from the province.”
“We’re kind of holding off on that one,” said Walker.
The 2025 asset management plan update presentation can be found in the agenda page on the Tay Township website.
Tay council meets for committee of the whole meetings every second Wednesday of the month, and regular council meetings every fourth Wednesday of the month. Archives and livestreams of council meetings are available through the Tay Township YouTube channel.
