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Why Maintaining City Infrastructure Before It Fails Saves Money

Sep 3, 2026 | FAQ, Fiscal Responsibility

Responsible asset management means maintaining and replacing Courtenay’s roads, bridges, pipes and public facilities before they fail, helping reduce emergency costs and protect taxpayers from much larger expenses in the future.

Most of the infrastructure people rely on every day is easy to overlook when it is working properly.

We drive on roads, cross bridges, turn on the tap and expect clean water to come out. Beneath our streets, kilometres of pipes carry water and wastewater throughout the community. Public buildings, parks, drainage systems and other municipal assets quietly provide services every day.

All of that infrastructure has something in common: it eventually needs to be maintained, repaired or replaced.

One of the most important financial responsibilities of a municipality is planning for that reality before infrastructure fails.

That is the purpose of asset management.

What is asset management?

Asset management is the process of understanding the infrastructure a municipality owns and planning for its maintenance and eventual replacement.

For a city, that includes assets such as roads and sidewalks, bridges, water and sewer systems, drainage infrastructure, municipal buildings, parks, emergency-service facilities, vehicles and equipment.

Courtenay has made asset management a formal part of its long-term planning. Council adopted an Asset Management Policy in 2015, and in 2019 Courtenay became one of the first municipalities in Canada to adopt an Asset Management Bylaw.

The City's program uses a lifecycle approach to infrastructure—considering the condition of assets, the services they provide, their expected lifespan and the funding required to maintain and eventually replace them.

That information allows municipalities to make long-term financial decisions instead of waiting for infrastructure to fail and then reacting to an emergency.

Maintenance is part of fiscal responsibility

Maintenance is rarely the most visible work a municipality does.

In 2025, Courtenay repaired 664 potholes, while also carrying out roadway paving, water-main flushing and other ongoing infrastructure maintenance.

A repaired pothole is not a major capital announcement. Neither is replacing a section of pipe before it breaks.

But collectively, this work is fundamental to protecting infrastructure taxpayers have already paid for.

Allowing an asset to deteriorate beyond the point where routine maintenance is effective can result in a much more expensive repair or replacement.

Fiscal responsibility therefore has to include more than controlling this year's spending. It also requires protecting the value of existing public assets and considering what today's decisions will cost taxpayers five, ten or twenty years from now.

The 5th Street Bridge demonstrates the challenge

The 5th Street Bridge is a good example of why infrastructure planning matters.

Originally constructed in 1960, the bridge is an important part of the Comox Valley transportation network. Although it received regular maintenance over the decades, major components eventually required rehabilitation. The bridge's protective coating had reached the end of its service life, while the deck and overlay also required repair.
The City determined that rehabilitation was the most cost-effective and efficient approach to extending the bridge's useful life.

>The completed project ultimately cost approximately $6.99 million, with approximately $1.96 million provided through the New Building Canada – Small Communities Fund.

The lesson is not unique to bridges.

The same principle applies to roads, underground pipes, buildings and other municipal infrastructure. Postponing necessary work may reduce spending temporarily, but it can also increase the eventual cost and reduce the options available when action finally becomes unavoidable.

The cost of waiting

Infrastructure costs change over time.

Construction materials become more expensive. Labour costs rise. Design standards evolve. A deteriorating asset may require more extensive work than it would have required several years earlier.

That does not mean every proposed project should proceed immediately. It means decisions about delaying infrastructure need to consider the consequences as well as the immediate savings.

Courtenay's approach to road condition provides a practical example. The City uses pavement scanning and other condition data to identify deterioration, prioritize repairs and coordinate road work with underground infrastructure.

The objective is straightforward: identify necessary work before it becomes critical and use better information to stretch infrastructure budgets over the long term.

Planning creates more funding options

Long-term infrastructure planning has another important financial advantage: it gives municipalities time to pursue outside funding.

Grant programs can significantly reduce the amount that must ultimately be paid locally, but municipalities cannot assume funding will simply appear when an asset reaches the end of its useful life.

Projects need to be identified. Preliminary work may need to be completed. Costs need to be understood. Projects often need to appear in long-term financial plans before a municipality is in a position to submit a credible funding application.

Courtenay's 2026–2030 Financial Plan illustrates this approach by identifying operating requirements, capital projects and expected funding sources over five years.

This is one reason residents may see major infrastructure projects in City budgets years before construction begins.

Planning for an expenditure is not necessarily the same as committing to immediately spend the full amount. It can be part of making sure the City is prepared when funding opportunities become available.

Water infrastructure requires long-term planning

Residential water metering provides another example of why infrastructure decisions need to consider long-term costs.

In 2026, Council reviewed a detailed Water Metering Business Case Study examining water consumption, financial sustainability and several implementation options.

Rather than moving immediately to a single city-wide installation project, Council approved a phased residential water metering program as Courtenay's long-term approach. The program is intended to begin with approximately 2,500 homes already equipped for meters and expand gradually over time.

Council also directed staff to develop a detailed implementation plan addressing funding, consumption-based rate structures, public engagement and a dedicated reserve for long-term metering and system costs.

That kind of phased approach demonstrates an important part of infrastructure planning: establishing the long-term objective while considering affordability, operational capacity and how the investment can responsibly be implemented over time.

A responsible approach to infrastructure investment

Major infrastructure projects can involve millions—or tens of millions—of dollars. They deserve scrutiny before proceeding.

A sound approach should consider:

    • Need: Is the project necessary, and what happens if it is not completed?
    • Condition: What is the current state and remaining useful life of the existing infrastructure?
    • Timing: Does the work need to happen now, or can it responsibly be deferred?
    • Alternatives: Are there less expensive ways to achieve the same result?
    • Lifecycle cost: What will the asset cost to build, operate, maintain and eventually replace?
    • Partnerships: Can the project be shared with another organization or level of government?
    • Grants: What provincial or federal funding could reduce the local contribution?
    • Risk: What are the financial and service consequences if the existing infrastructure fails?

These questions provide a much better measure of fiscal responsibility than simply asking whether a project is expensive.

Finding less expensive ways to meet infrastructure needs

Planning also creates opportunities to reconsider how projects are designed.

The new East Courtenay Fire Hall is a good example.

>The facility is being designed to improve response times, accommodate Courtenay's growth and increase volunteer firefighter capacity. Its design is based on a recently completed fire hall in Dashwood, providing efficiencies in the design process rather than starting entirely from scratch.

Following planning, design, procurement and tendering, the City's current estimated construction cost is $14 million. The City is continuing to pursue grant opportunities that could offset the amount funded through borrowing.

This is the kind of scrutiny major capital projects require: clearly establish the need, examine alternatives, look for efficiencies, pursue outside funding and refine costs before construction proceeds.

Infrastructure decisions affect future taxpayers

One of the difficult realities of municipal government is that today's infrastructure decisions can affect taxpayers for decades.

Choosing to build something creates future operating and maintenance costs.

Choosing not to maintain something can create larger replacement costs.

Choosing to postpone a necessary project can expose the City to inflation, deterioration and emergency repairs.

There is rarely a decision that has no financial consequence.

That is why infrastructure planning needs to extend beyond a single annual budget.

Council needs to understand what assets the City owns, when major expenses are likely to occur and how those costs can be managed over time.

Taking care of what we already own

There will always be pressure to focus on new projects because new infrastructure is more visible than maintaining existing infrastructure.

But one of the most important responsibilities of local government is taking care of what taxpayers have already paid for.

Courtenay will continue to need new infrastructure as the community grows. At the same time, we have roads, bridges, pipes, facilities and other assets that must continue serving residents safely and reliably.

Balancing those responsibilities requires long-term planning.

Asset management gives us the information needed to establish priorities, anticipate future costs and pursue funding before infrastructure reaches a crisis point.

That does not mean every project should proceed immediately.

It means we should understand the consequences of both acting and waiting.

Maintaining infrastructure before it fails may not always be the most visible investment a city makes, but over the long term, it can be one of the most financially responsible.

Sources & Further Reading