Plans to develop the North End Water District in the Town of Pomfret appear to be well under way.
Engineer Rob Klavoon from Wendel Duchscherer met with the Pomfret Town Board and laid out the time frame for submitting the request for proposals. Once a bid is accepted and approved, ground breaking can begin to install supply line pipe.
Klavoon told the board "great progress" had been made with the agreement with the village of Fredonia, and correspondence Klavoon received from the Department of Environmental Conservation, funding agency and other agencies has been positive.
"We will cull through the comments in the next week or two and resolve any issues," he said.
Aug. 8 has been set by Klavoon as the date to announce a request for bids, and to have the specifications and plans available to prospective bidders by Aug. 21.
"We can open the bids on September 13 if you want to so a special meeting to do it before your regular meeting and award on September 19," he suggested.
Klavoon noted one final public information session will be needed to explain homeowners' responsibilities in connecting pipe from their homes to the line at the road. Klavoon said the pipe could be copper or polyethylene plastic.
Town Supervisor Don Steger expressed relief.
"Copper is really expensive right now, so I wouldn't want that to be something that makes people not want to tie into the system," he said.
Klavoon also explained to the board the need for 24 temporary and 8 permanent easements. The temporary easements would last only through the construction phase, when certain excavating equipment might encroach on private property. The permanent easements, Klavoon explained, would be to required to have access to certain things like main meters and other buried equipment.
A resolution was passed to enter into the water conservation contract specified by the Village of Fredonia, as required by the DEC. According to Klavoon, the water supply permit will not be granted without adopting the resolution, which he prepared for the board. Steger said he was comfortable with the agreement, and believed the town had entered into it or a similar agreement in the past.
"It's all just common sense ... things like installing low flush toilets and low flow shower heads ... things people are doing anyway," Steger said, and noted much of the agreement applies to village maintenance of the reservoir. The resolution was approved unanimously, with only Councilwoman Pat Christina not in attendance.
Lily Dale Trustee Cara Seekings addressed the board and asked for help in developing the water district planning steps for Lily Dale. Steger explained Lily Dale must create a public water district by its residents in order to legally become part of the municipal water system. "You have to officially be in a public water district, so you have to set it up so that the people who will get the water vote to become a water district," he said.
Councilman David Penharlow agreed to be the liaison to Seekings and Lily Dale to assist in the district formation steps. "I'm going to need a lot of guidance from you, Don," Penharlow told Steger.
Steger explained the town water rates would have to increase due to the increase in the rate by the village by 20 cents per gallon. A motion was carried to raise the rate accordingly to $5.84 for residential customers and $8.54 for commercial accounts.
During the public portion of the meeting, a resident asked Councilman Scott Johnston if any progress had been made toward developing a joint committee with the Fredonia Village Board. Johnston said he'd been in contact with Mayor Stephen Keefe recently and Trustee Mark Ruckman. Councilwoman Ann Eckman volunteered to be on the committee with Johnston.
In other business, Highway Supervisor Daniel Bigelow told the board he investigated an issue in the town on Dale Drive after a resident complained about the speed limit changing "in a kind of weird way," according to Bigelow. A very short 30 mph zone is situated between two 45 mph zones, and the resident suggested the 30 mph zone be extended. Bigelow concurred with the resident's assessment. After a discussion, it was agreed the paperwork to make the changes would begin.
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