THUNDER BAY – The City of Thunder Bay is expanding a grant program meant to help low-income homeowners replace lead water service connections.
Coun. Andrew Foulds moved to double funding for the grants to $20,000 in the 2022 budget at a review meeting Tuesday, meaning 20 non-repayable grants of $1,000 each will be available this year.
The financial assistance program also offers interest-free loans of up to $5,000 to homeowners who don’t qualify for grants.
The incentives are intended to address the issue of lead contamination in the estimated 8,000 local homes that still have service connections containing lead, which can be hazardous in even small concentrations.
The city estimated in 2020 that 1,000 of those homes had levels of lead at the tap exceeding provincial guidelines of 10 micrograms per litre. It has provided water filters to affected local residents, after its previous strategy of adding sodium hydroxide to the water supply was discontinued in 2020 amid concerns it was causing pinhole leaks (the city has denied the claims in court).
Foulds praised staff for the design of the financial assistance program, which he has championed, but called administration’s recommendation for 10 grants in 2022 “a bit conservative.”
“I’m just wanting us to be a little bit more ambitious, and to signal to the community that we want to help out,” he said.
He hopes the program will benefit residents who own a home but struggle to make ends meet, like some seniors and those on the Ontario Disability Support Program.
Replacing private lead service connections costs homeowners an average of $5,100, plus restoration costs, the city has estimated.
Since the city’s loan program launched in the summer 2020, only 46 loans had been issued as of December, while 14 others were approved but not yet issued.
Foulds said he’s optimistic the program is slowly building momentum, however, with the 2021 totals higher than previous years.
“In the last year, this program is seeing some success,” he said.
Coun. Brian Hamilton said it will be important for staff to continue providing annual reports on the program, so council can measure its efficacy.
The city previously offered an extended 10-year loan for low-income homeowners, but it found little uptake. Councillors approved the creation of $10,000 in grants in December.
Foulds moved to double that Tuesday after confirming the city’s Waterworks Capital Reserve Fund, the program's funding source, has an uncommitted balance of over $14 million.
The program will not impact water rates, since it draws from reserves.
It was created in 2020 with a $1.35 million loan envelope, with around $1.18 million of that remaining available as of December.
The program’s actual cost to the city is estimated at $100,000, including lost interest revenue over the lifetime of the loans, and administration costs.
The city has estimated it would cost fully $80 million to remove lead from all public and private water infrastructure in the city, but says there’s little provincial or federal support available.
Foulds’s budget amendment to expand the grant program won unanimous support from council at Tuesday’s meeting.
