REGULAR MEETING   Tuesday, JANUARY 22nd, 2008

EAST LYME WATER & SEWER COMMISSION

MINUTES

The East Lyme Water & Sewer Commission held a Regular Meeting on Tuesday, January 22, 2008 at the East Lyme Town Hall, 108 Pennsylvania Avenue, Niantic CT. Chairman Formica called the Regular Meeting to order at 7:00 PM.

PRESENT:                 Paul Formica, Chairman, Steve DiGiovanna, Dave Zoller. Joe Mingo, Mary Cahill, Dave Bond

ALSO PRESENT:       Attorney Edward O’Connell, Town Counsel

                                 Andy McKirdy, Ex-Officio, Board of Selectmen

                                 Brad Kargl, Municipal Utility Engineer

                                 Michael Giannattasio, Public Works Director

ABSENT:                   Roger Spencer, Robert Gadbois, Wayne Fraser

1.       Call to Order

Chairman Formica called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM.

Attorney O’Connell led the Pledge.

2.       Approval of Minutes

à    Regular Meeting Minutes – December 18, 2007

Mr. Formica called for discussion or any corrections to the Regular Meeting Minutes of December 18, 2007.

**MOTION (1)

Mr. DiGiovanna moved to approve the Regular Meeting Minutes of December 18, 2007 of the Water & Sewer Commission as presented.

Mr. Zoller seconded the motion.

Vote:  6 – 0 – 0.  Motion passed.

3.       Delegations

Mr. Formica called for anyone who wished to speak under delegations.

There was no one.

4.       Approval of Bills

¨       Cinami Excavation, LLC – Payment Application No. 15 - $35,539.94

Mr. Kargl noted that they had a copy of this request for payment in their packets and that it had been reviewed and signed and that it was ready for payment.

**MOTION (2)

Mr. DiGiovanna moved to approve the payment of Application No. 15 to Cinami Excavation, LLC in the amount of $35,539.94.

Ms. Cahill seconded the motion.

Mr. Zoller asked if this closes this out.

Mr. Kargl said that it does close out this Pump Station Contract except for the 2% that is held for landscaping issues that will be taken care of in the spring and a few punch list items.

Vote:  6 – 0 – 0.  Motion passed.

¨       ITI – Invoice #2K8-0102 - $20,520.00

Mr. Formica called for a motion.

**MOTION (3)

Mr. Zoller moved to approve the payment of Invoice #2K8-0102 to ITI in the amount of $20,520.00.

Mr. DiGiovanna seconded the motion.

Mr. Mingo asked if the tank is back on line.

Mr. Kargl said that it has been disinfected / chlorinated and is being filled as they speak. He added that they had budgeted $30,000 for the inspection work and that it has come in at around $20,000 because they moved so quickly on it. He said that the State Health Department also came down to look at this and that they are looking to recommend the water mixing stratification system as a standard procedure to others.

Mr. Bond asked if there were any extras that they had to pay for.

Mr. Kargl said no; he noted that they will see some overtime in the bill however that will be paid back by Amstar and they will deduct that amount from their total bill.

Mr. Formica asked how much the stratification system cost.

Mr. Kargl said that it was $85,000.

Vote:  6 – 0 – 0.  Motion passed.

5.       Communications

à         See Correspondence Log

There was no discussion.

6.       11 Winthrop Road – Request for Relief on Water Bill

Mr. Kargl explained that this technically does not fall under the ‘1 in 10’ policy as the failure occurred in a plastic pipe and it does not meet the stipulation that the service connection be constructed of copper pipe. It was difficult to detect and he noted that it was ultimately corrected in August of 2007. He noted that Mrs. Katz is present to answer any questions that they might have.

Mr. Zoller asked if the PVC pipe was originally installed by the builder.

Mr. Kargl said that he thought so and that it looks like it was as far as he can tell. He added that the house is located up a hill in rocky terrain and it was difficult to find where the leak was. He said that he has been given a copy of the bill from the contractor who made the repair to the plastic pipe.

Mr. DiGiovanna asked if the ‘1 in 10’ was changed to revisit plastic piping.

Mr. Kargl said that it was not.

Mr. DiGiovanna asked Mr. Kargl to revisit the language and to come back to them with something. He noted that their goal is to be consistent. In this instance, he suggested that they grant the ‘1 in 10’.

The Commissioners were in agreement that it should be granted.

Mr. Kargl said that he had provided them with the computations in the letter that they had in their packets.

**MOTION (4)

Mr. Zoller moved to grant the request for a ‘1 in 10’ for 11 Winthrop Road per the following adjustment calculations – one for the May 2007 bill (adjusted from $892.51 to $491.05), and the other for the November 2007 bill (adjusted from $1,067.09 to $613.13).

Ms. Cahill seconded the motion.

Vote:  6 – 0 – 0.  Motion passed.

7.       Draft Open Space Plan Presentation – Chairman of the Open Space Steering Committee

Art Carlson, Chairman of the Open Space Steering Committee explained that this study was farther reaching than they had originally expected and that in the end they came up with results very similar to those of the Eight Mile River Study. He said that they have heard that there is too much open space in Town as when you look at the Town, it does appear that there is. He asked for a map of all of the land that is comprised of 10 acres or more with either no house or just one home on it. He said that they then asked what the function of this open space was and what all of the land that is dedicated to open space means – can people walk on it and enjoy it, etc. In looking at these things, he said that it turns out that there is limited area that is open space. They then asked what purpose open space plays. They identified the four aquifer areas in Town and the area over them should provide the function of preservation of the drinking water of the Town. He noted that the aquifer areas are in green on the map and that their definition is that this is where water has accumulated and any water that lies within this specific boundary flows downhill to LI Sound. There is a spongy watershed area that water is filtered and cleansed by.

Once they have an understanding of how the aquifer behaves, they can look at how they can ‘get’ or ‘obtain’ the land that sits on top of it. Some of the last large remaining areas include: The Sportsman’s Club, Green Valley Estates, Bobrow Property, Stones Ranch, Yale Property, Hathaway Farms, Girl Scout Camp, Golf Course and White Gate Farm. There is also agricultural land use potential. He suggested that they should be ready to move if any of this property becomes available be it that they have to buy it or whatever means can be employed. Open space land has a purpose of providing physical and mental health and if everything worked right, all of this property would be under our control. The criteria by which they chose this land is that it had to: fall in the watershed, had to provide water access (salt water or freshwater), and provide active and passive recreation.

He said that they looked for large acreage under the adage of ‘the bigger, the better’. Prime farmland was considered as niche farming is very much coming into vogue. They also sought to preserve unique geological features and cultural and historical sites such as the old hunting lodge. Bio-diversity of insects and wildlife was also considered. The question then arose as to if the Town could afford this and he insists that they could and that they have to look at open space just as you would a library or the school or school buses.

The cost of the properties is a concern and while the properties would come off of the tax rolls and be a permanent, long-term loss, one of the things that they could do to offset it is to (as an example) sell McCook’s Point. For example, if they got $3M for it, they could perhaps get some $80,000 per year in taxes and this would help offset the loss of the other properties. He said that these are just ideas of how things might be considered.

In summary, he said that they have rated certain lands in terms of importance and there is no reason to believe that these spaces will stay the way that they are now for the next century. As open space they could add footpaths and increase the agricultural level of the Town, provide more recreational areas, provide more access to the water and increase large contiguous blocks of open space. He said that a rough estimate of the cost of all of this land now is in the $14M range.

Mr. Mingo noted that the most important part of the watershed is the wetlands because they protect the water and that 50% of the water comes from the ground.

Mr. Kargl noted that there are two aquifer areas that they have wells in.

Mr. Giannattasio said that he has heard most of this before during the preparation stage and that it is certainly something to think about.

Mr. Formica thanked Mr. Carlson for his presentation.

8.       Set Public Hearing Date for Supplemental Sewer Benefit Assessments – AHEPA, 267 Roxbury Road; 304-308 Main Street; 12R Mohawk Trail; and 6 Capitol Drive

Mr. Kargl said that Attorney O’Connell could explain this to them.

Attorney O’Connell explained the notices of Public Hearing. He said that there are three (3) because the AHEPA is a new elderly housing project that is driven by the assessment ordinance which is a formula assessment. Also, AHEPA is proposing to pay a large sum towards this assessment and will also be proposing an accelerated payment plan. The second notice is for ordinary sewer assessments with payment over the 20 years as set forth. The third notice of Capitol Drive was the first extension of the sewer system and it carries a different interest rate than the 1990 rates. He said that they would need to authorize the Chair to sign the three (3) notices of Public Hearing.

**MOTION (5)

Mr. Mingo moved to authorize the Chairman to sign the Notices (3) of Public Hearing for the Supplemental Sewer Benefit Assessments for: AHEPA, 267 Roxbury Road; 304-308 Main Street; 12R Mohawk Trail and 6 Capitol Drive for the February 26, 2008 meeting of the Commission.

Mr. DiGiovanna seconded the motion.

Mr. DiGiovanna asked why Mohawk Drive and Capitol Drive were not done originally.

Attorney O’Connell said that this was a new tract of land that was carved out of the original.

Vote:  6 – 0 – 0.  Motion passed.

9.       Saunders Point Draft Sewer Survey

Mr. Kargl noted the one page sewer survey that they had in their packets that they would be sending out to the residents in the Saunders Point area as defined in the sewer shed map. He noted that they would be following the boundary line and said that he has been working with the people from Saunders Point.

Mr. DiGiovanna asked if there was any discussion on how far up Pennsylvania Avenue they would go as they are tying into Pine Grove.

Mr. Kargl said that the mailing does not include Pennsylvania Avenue – it follows the sewer shed map boundary. He noted the Weston & Sampson Study which had cautioned that they would not be able to add any extras.

Mr. Mingo said that they should go back to the original facilities plan to see what it says and that they also have to keep in mind that before looking at expansion, that they have to look at capacity as it is skewered. The primary goal is to satisfy the facilities plan.

Mr. DiGiovanna asked if this would have any ramification on development in Oswegatchie Hills.

Mr. Giannattasio and Mr. Kargl said no as this area is bounded by open space or small private parcels.

Attorney O’Connell suggested that it be phrased in the survey letter that this survey will allow them to determine if sewers would be feasible in Saunders Point.

10.   Chairman’s Report

Mr. Formica reported that he had a request for a meeting from the CT Water Co. and that he and Mr. Giannattasio and Mr. Kargl went and met with them. The gist is that the CT Water Co. buys smaller water companies. He also reported that they had scheduled a meeting in Hartford with the DEP on Well 5 however that meeting had to be re-scheduled.

Mr. Kargl said that the DEP was slow to follow-up and that they could possibly meet on 2/7/08.

Mr. Mingo noted that this is meant to be for a fish management plan.

Mr. Formica lastly reported that he has received a resignation notice that was not filed with the Town Clerk so he would present it to the Town Clerk tomorrow.

Mr. Mingo asked if there was any update on the Tri-Town Meetings.

Attorney O’Connell said that the Committee had reviewed the RFP’s for the tasks and that the Waterford Attorney had received his copy late in the process. All three of them (Attorneys from the three Towns) worked together and suggested several understandings – such as – each Community Utility would pay for one-third of the cost of the study rather than by flow amount; no changes would be made without the agreement of all of the communities and no contract would be signed without all three of the communities agreeing.

11.   System-wide Chlorine Disinfection/East Lyme Water System – Maguire Services Agreement Amendment No. 16

Mr. Kargl said that he is working with Maguire on this amendment proposal.  

12.   Staff Updates

a.   Pine Grove Sewer Extension Project

Mr. Kargl reported that the system is operations and that connections are being made. They are holding a 2% retainage on Ludlow for spring work and waiting on the final invoice from Ludlow Construction.

b.   Boston Post Road Sewer Extension

Mr. Kargl reported that they should be accepting this shortly.

c.   Boston Post Road Tank Painting Project

Mr. Kargl reported that this is complete and the tank is being filled as previously stated.

d.   Crossley Court Sewer Extension

Mr. Kargl reported that Mr. Giannattasio had a discussion with Weston & Sampson regarding this and that it looks like, for a small cost, that they can utilize the Pine Grove specs and make some revisions to get going on the bidding process.

e.   Saunders Point Sewer Extension

Mr. Kargl reported that the survey will be sent out soon.

Mr. Formica asked that they also attach a copy of the sewer shed boundary map of that area for the residents to see.

f.    Darrow Pond Project

Mr. Formica said that he will be meeting with the project managers on this soon.

g.   Walnut Hill Development

Attorney O’Connell said that there is a proposed community septic system for this site and that he looked at the agreement that has been in place for awhile and tightened it up a bit. He said that the owner has indicated that he is willing to sign it and it aware that it will be on the land records.

h.   Maguire Group Monthly Status Report

Mr. Kargl noted that they have completed the stream gauges recalibration and that this will affect the Well 5 report that goes to the State.

i.   Water Department Monthly Report

Mr. Kargl noted that Well 4A is out of service for a routine filter media project and that during this project they found that there was a lot more that had to be done with the damage to the gravel screen supports that they discovered. He said that while they can cover it in the current operating budget this is another $43,000 in repairs that was not anticipated.

Mr. DiGiovanna asked why this was so bad.

Mr. Kargl said that his guess is that it probably was not installed right in the beginning. 

j.   Sewer Department Monthly Report

There was no discussion.

k.  Regionalization Issues  

There was no discussion.

l.   Rates/Capital Improvement Plan

There was no discussion.

m.   Prison Communications

There was no discussion.

n.   Other

There was none.

13.   New Business

There was none.

14.   ADJOURNMENT

**MOTION (6)

Mr. Mingo moved to adjourn this January 22, 2008 Regular Meeting of the East Lyme Water & Sewer Commission at 8:44 PM.

Mr. DiGiovanna seconded the motion.

Vote:  6 – 0 – 0.  Motion passed.

Respectfully submitted,

Karen Zmitruk,

Recording Secretary