Erin, Ontario

TOWN OF ER IN, ONTAR IO will have to foot the bill for the difference. However, we are asking for government grants and we have consultants working on a wastewater funding study, which will provide us with options on how to move forward with financing the project. “In the interim, with the old infrastructure starting to fail, the scenario isn’t good. In the rural area, it’s easier and cheaper to replace a septic system because you have the land to do a new system. In the urban area, with older homes on small lots, they have to go to different systems that are much more expensive – as high as $30,000 to replace the septic. I’m getting letters from residents saying, ‘Mr. Mayor, when are we going to get this communal wastewater system going?’ But it’s not up to me; we’ve done our part and I do feel for our residents who are in that difficult situation. I wish there was an easy answer.” BVM: How are you encouraging business growth to increase the tax base? Alls: “Our rural residents are paying the majority of the tax bill; a lot of wealthy people from Toronto have built beautiful country estates up this way because of our scenic, rural environment. On the business side, we’re doing a lot of BR+E (business retention and expansion). We’re out talking to our local businesses, and we’ve introduced a Community Improvement Plan, which will give businesses money to improve their building façade or other areas that will help them grow. With their growth, we get more taxes. So it works both ways. Pintar Manufacturing and Canadian Robotics, Ltd. are two of our largest employers. And we have a lot of unique entrepreneurial, start-up businesses with one or two people. We’re actively pursuing new business, but it’s very awkward without the wastewater system. “While Erin grows, we want to keep it as green as possible. We’ve replaced all our streetlights with LED lighting, and we’re looking at a new waste collection system for our town and trails, which separates recyclable material from waste