A new sewage bylaw could hit a few West Shore property owners in the pocketbook this year.

If your Langford property has access to a sewer main but isnB次元官网网址檛 connected, you have until the end of 2019 to hook up. If one is subsequently constructed that would give you access, you have until the end of 2019 or one year from that lineB次元官网网址檚 completion date, whichever is later, to get connected.

But, a recent amendment to that relatively new bylaw specifically targets properties on Langford, Glen and Florence lakes. Lakefront properties now have until May 2017 to get connected. If a new line is constructed, owners have a year from its completion to connect.

B次元官网网址淭hey were told to be on sewer 15 years ago B次元官网网址� We thought weB次元官网网址檇 have more people hooking up,B次元官网网址� said Langford Mayor Stew Young.

At that time, he said, the expectation was that homes with access to sewer would connect when they could or transition over at the end of their septic systemB次元官网网址檚 lifespan. B次元官网网址淲e just never really enforced it,B次元官网网址� he said, adding thereB次元官网网址檚 still a few stragglers, specifically in environmentally sensitive areas surrounding LangfordB次元官网网址檚 lakes, that the City is now looking to get connected. B次元官网网址淭hat was in our plan B次元官网网址� Now itB次元官网网址檚 time to get everyone hooked up.B次元官网网址�

This push to have property owners connect to sewer, Young said, is to create a B次元官网网址渓evel playing fieldB次元官网网址� and help lessen the cost burden for property owners already connected to sewer.

Michelle Mahovlich, LangfordB次元官网网址檚 director of engineering, said the creation of the new sewer utility bylaw was a matter of house cleaning. With the CityB次元官网网址檚 old sewer bylaws dating back to the CityB次元官网网址檚 incorporation, she noted B次元官网网址渟ome aspects were out of date or no longer applicable.B次元官网网址�

With two new sewer mains in the works, Mahovlich said almost every parcel around the three lakes should have access to sewer in the near future.

B次元官网网址淐ouncil sees that as an environmental priority,B次元官网网址� she said, echoing YoungB次元官网网址檚 comment that getting those properties off septic and hooked up to sewer lines has been in the works for awhile.

In 2004, the City of Langford signed an agreement with West Shore Environmental Services Inc., a division of Corix Utilities, to operate and maintain extensions of the CityB次元官网网址檚 sewage collection system. This agreement also includes operating and maintaining the existing sewers, as well as handling all customer inquiries.

There is also a price tag that comes with the jump to sewer, as owners will be faced with a number of one-time charges. They include a sewer connection fee of $1,500 per inch of service pipe diameter, a sewer capital recovery fee B次元官网网址� itB次元官网网址檚 $9,426 for 2016 but will rise to more than $9,700 in 2017 B次元官网网址� and an incremental storage improvement fee of $495.

Mahovlich noted these fees are designed to help cover the CityB次元官网网址檚 sewer construction costs.

The fees are outlined within the sewer utility bylaw, which the public can view online . The City of Langford also has some answers to posted on their site to help property owners with the transition.

katie@goldstreamgazette.com