TOWN OF SOMERS

WATER POLLUTION CONTROL AUTHORITY

P. O. Box 308

Somers, Connecticut 06071

 

WPCA Minutes

3/1/05; 7:15 p.m.

Town Hall Conference Room

 

I.          Public Hearing

                        166 Main Street - Reassessment

 

                        Chairman Jim Botellio opened the public hearing at 7:22 p.m. and read the legal notice.  The new use of this building will be a Chinese take-out restaurant with an apartment upstairs. The water assessment will go from 2.63 EDU's to 3.5 EDU's.  The additional assessment will be $2,262.00. 

 

Steve Getman made a motion to close the public hearing at 7:25 p.m., seconded by Jim Faust and unanimously approved by the Authority.

 

II.        Call to Order:

 

            Chairman Jim Botellio called the regular meeting to order at 7:25 p.m.  Members present were:  Jim Botellio; Dan Fraro; Jim Faust and Steve Getman.  Charles Colby arrived at 7:40 p.m.  Sanitarian Steve Jacobs was also in attendance.

 

III.            Approval of Minutes:            February 1, 2005

 

            Changes were made to Page 3: First line:   Remove "assessment" and change to "user charge".  Remove "3.5" and change to "3.0".  2nd line:  remove "based on" and replace with "increased to".

Steve Getman made a motion to approve the 2/1/05 minutes, as amended.  This motion was seconded by Jim Faust and unanimously approved by the Authority.

 

IV.            Discussion - Possible Decision:            166 Main Street - Change of Use

 

            Steve Getman made a motion to approve the change of use for 166 Main Street with the resultant sewer user charge of 4.5 EDU's and water assessment of 3.5 EDU's.

This motion was seconded by Jim Faust and unanimously approved by the Authority.

Steve Jacobs will have the public notice published in the newspaper on March 4, 2005.

 

V.        27 Quality Avenue - Change of Use

 

            This building will be occupied by MacDac Engineering, a software training business.  The new sewer user charge will be 2.43 EDU's.  There will be no increase in the water assessment.  The increase will be prorated to the date of the issuance of a

 

WPCA Minutes

3/1/05

Page 2

 

Certificate of Occupancy.

Steve Getman made a motion to approve the new sewer user charge of 2.43 EDU's for 27 Quality Avenue, with no increase in the water assessment.  This motion was seconded by Jim Faust and unanimously approved by the Authority.

 

VI.            Connecticut Department of Correction - Remediation Update

 

            Several of the people on Rye Hill Circle have been notified that the ten years of free water is up as of April 1, 2005. 

 

DOC is recommending one more application of HRC in 2005.  One area in the laundry still has elevated levels. 

 

MTBE impacts were checked at the maintenance garage.  Soil and a tank have been removed and it is expected the levels will drop.  The area will continue to be monitored.

 

Groundwater remediation report was received from Fuss and O'Neill.  They have removed 89# of VOC's from the groundwater and an additional 29# from the air extraction.  Average concentrations back in 1999 were a little over 1,000; now it is just a little over 200.

 

Bedrock aquifer.  288# were removed from the groundwater.  They have been pumping between 15 - 19 gallons per minute since 1999.

 

SWIA area - removed 39# of VOC's before the system had to be shut down because it interfered with the HRC applications.  They intend to intensify monitoring in the SWIA area from semi-annual to quarterly.  Overall, the plume has retracted since 1999 and the SWIA area has dropped dramatically.

 

Steve Jacobs showed the overall plume area which has shrunk down and seems to be stabilized.  They are still aggressive in their remediation and it seems to be working.  There are only five properties left that have not hooked up to public water.

 

VII.            Sewer/Water Billing

            a.            Collection Update

                        Collection has been going good with several pay-offs and collection of delinquent accounts on the water system.  There is $9600.00 outstanding for the water system that includes the long-time delinquents.

 

The Maturo property is being sold to Antonacci.  One piece of it, 107 Maple Street, has never been billed and never been liened.  The original water assessment was $1600.00

WPCA Minutes

3/1/05

Page 3

 

and has been paid off. 

 

            b.            Delinquent Accounts

                        We received a payment of $1,000 towards a delinquent account on 24 Hall Hill Road.  However, monthly payments will have to be made on the balance of the delinquency or the account will be turned over to a collection agency.  We have never heard from the two delinquent accounts on Maple Ridge Drive so these have been forwarded to the collection agency.

 

            c.            Billing Operator

                        The Board of Selectmen have not advised the WPCA as to their intentions for staffing of a part-time clerical person in the Land Use Department who would also be responsible for the billing system.

 

VIII.    Health Department Regionalization

            Legislation  has been proposed

requiring towns to join a health district.  However, it is not a requirement until 2008.  Somers might be able to talk to other similar towns to see if we can form our own health district.  Our health doctor, Dr. Segool, will stay with the town as long as it is a separate entity.  Regionalization has very strong support from the State Health Department.  If Somers joins a health district composed of larger towns, service to the citizens of Somers will suffer.

 

IX.            Correspondence/Audience Participation

 

            We have received a breakdown of the charges made to Somers from Hazardville Water for non-routine maintenance of the pump station.  We have a copy of the settlement agreement between the town and HWC in the amount of $39,999.07.  Our ratio is 45.2% of the cost of non-routine maintenance which will be in effect until January of 2008. 

 

Charles Colby made a motion to endorse the signing of this settlement agreement between the Town of Somers and Hazardville Water Company.  This agreement includes hydrant and maintenance fees.  Steve Getman seconded the motion that was unanimously approved by the Authority.

 

Received a letter from the EPA that they are going to clean up the cadmium contamination at 60 Springfield Road.

 

It was suggested that Billing System Operator is listed as a separate agenda item for the next meeting.

 

 

WPCA Minutes

3/1/05

Page 4

 

 

 

X.        Bills:

 

                        Sonitrol                                                $258.17

                        Parker Septic                                       $45.00

 

Forestry Operators Inc.             $26.58

                        Journal Inquirer                                    $47.22

                        Journal Inquirer                                    $110.18

 

            Charles Colby made a motion to approve payment of the bills; seconded by Steve Getman and unanimously approved by the Authority.

 

XI.            Adjournment:

 

            Motion made by Charles Colby to adjourn the meeting; seconded by Steve Getman and unanimously approved by the Authority.  The meeting adjourned at 8:50.

 

                                                            Respectfully submitted,

 

 

 

                                                            Dan Fraro, Secretary

                                                            Connie Carenzo, Recording Secretary

 

 

MINUTES ARE NOT OFFICIAL UNTIL APPROVAL AT A SUBSEQUENT MEETING.