Commissioners Present: Paul C. DeMaio Chairman, Joseph M. Prior Vice Chairman, Marshall L. Harris Clerk
Employees Present: Superintendent: Craig W. Jalbert; Secretary: Dale Barnes-Johnson
Open the Meeting: The meeting was called to order at 3:30 p.m.
Accept the Meeting Minutes: Pass over until minutes are prepared.
OLD/NEW BUSINESS
Hospital Road Pump Station Rehab Project ~ in spite of the requirements and holidays, Tata & Howard (T&H) and our staff worked very hard to get the USDA application finalized and submitted on time, we are now waiting for USDA confirmation. Design is ongoing and fifty percent done, T&H is confident with the estimates. Craig is waiting for a response to his e-mail to USDA regarding our application status, and loan approval as we are in the middle of our budget process and want to make sure we do not come up short. Problems at the station are evidence that this project needs to get done soon. Saturday, 01/03/2015 the wet well flooded due to a drive fault on Pump #2. Unfortunately the relay that starts the lag pump (#1) and the relay that triggers the high alarm both failed
which in turn caused the flood. The muffin monster motor was submerged and it also eventually failed on Sunday. Craig contacted R.H. White on Monday; they located a replacement motor for the monster and it was replaced on Tuesday. Lagrant Electric replaced the faulty relays on Tuesday as well and the station was back to normal by the end of the day. A lot was learned about the bubbler system during the incident and Craig contacted T&H to change the design and incorporate what was learned. A new bubbler system is preferred for our situation with a float switch backup to alert pumps to start without going thru PLC in case of electrical issues. Tom and Tony still have not completed cleaning as they found a wet well issue during the incident; a big grease burgh. A pressure washer was used to start removing it manually; it will take at least another day to complete.
FY2016 Budget ~ the budget and rate analysis process are moving along, budget increases include indirect costs, minimal contractual salary (without knowing what 2016 raises will be) postage, dues/memberships/licenses increases and an additional $5,000 easement maintenance line item to both water and sewer, there are no big purchases coming up, maybe a truck in a few years. Our billed water usage continues to drop resulting in an equal drop in our revenue. Rate adjustments will be necessary to cover the loss in revenue and increases in operating, salary and indirect costs.
Department Activity
Salary Classification Study ~ time has been devoted to complete the position analysis questionnaires, tomorrow interviews for union employees will take place.
Meter Reading ~ readings for Oct-Dec usage took place as scheduled, bills will be mailed Thursday 01/22/2015. Billed usage was 5 million gallons less in 2014 than 2013 which equals a $27,000 loss in revenue. Water is off and meters removed in approximately 30 homes with nearly 50 accounts registering zero usages this past billing, a small amount due to meter issues but the vast majority are vacant homes.
Water / Sewer Repairs ~ the property owner of the barn on Stebbins Road called to report a leak on the service line, Craig went to the location and verified it was on private property. A letter was sent advising that the W&S Dept. does not own or maintain water service lines on private property, therefore required repairs to address the leak are the responsibility of the property owner, a commitment that repairs will be made by December 12, 2014 was requested, otherwise we will be forced to shut off water service to the barn. Demolition of the Sand and Gravel Scale house took place, a new curb stop and plug on the main was installed for future use.
Freeze Ups ~ over the past weekend the police notified Tom of a water leak at 36 Bethany Road, Tom and Tony had to jack hammer the frost to get to the curb stop to shut the water off. The police were unable to contact the owner, the following Monday Dale e-mailed the owner advising them the water was turned off due to a leak in the house and that property owners are responsible for keeping waterlines and meters from freezing and that service would not be restored until proper repairs were made. Other freeze ups responded to include King Avenue, Thompson Street, and Beebe Road (Garv’s) who was without water for days, the previous owners must have run water in cold weather. Craig did research on service line thawing equipment which cost $3,000 new; Vellano sells a unit, and referred Craig to a
rental company in NY $84 to ship and $100/day. Although this is nothing the department would purchase due to liability issues, Craig talked to Prescott to see if they would buy the equipment and rent out
Leak at Hospital Road Pump Station ~ Cummings Northeast had to come out and inspect the generator after water leaked into the generators electrical panel. It appears a line froze and pushed the elbow off causing water to spray.
Bunyan Troubles ~ a variable frequency drive (VFD) failed on Pump #1. Unfortunately, Square D doesn’t support that unit anymore so we are still waiting to hear back what options they can give us regarding repair or replacement.
PLC Programming ~ Craig has been getting pricing to flow pace the chlorine pumps. Although it is expensive, it is a needed safety feature to prevent overfeeding chlorine.
Furniture ~ surplus furniture was moved to the office for much needed additional storage and organization.
Overhead Door Openers ~ door openers are installed and working.
NEXT MEETING: The next meeting has been set for Wednesday, February 4, 2014 at 3:30p.m.
ADJOURN: A motion was made by Joe and seconded by Paul to adjourn at 4:30 p.m. Motion passed unanimously.
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Marshall L. Harris, Clerk
cc: Selectmen
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