A. ROLL CALL
Members Present: Richard Aries, Donald Antaya, Robert Dickinson, Carol Fletterick, Vicki Paliulis and William Vees
Members Absent: Ed Havens, Jr.
Alternates Present: Richard Siedman sitting in for Ed Havens, Jr.
Alternates Absent: M. Atif Quraishi
Staff Present: C. Fred Shaw, Superintendent of Pollution Control
Ether A. Diaz, Recording Secretary
Others Present: Joseph Candeias, Town Resident
Wilfredo Garcia, Town Employee
Lisa M. Muscanell-DePaola, Wright-Pierce
Councilor Stephen Wagner, WPCA Liaison
Chairman Richard Aries called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. The following actions were taken during the January 6, 2015 Regular Meeting of the Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA).
Chairman Richard Aries appointed Mr. Richard Siedman to sit in for Vicki Paliulis. Ms. Paliulis arrived at 7:05 p.m.; Mr. Siedman was re-appointed to sit in for Mr. Ed Havens, Jr.
B. ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS
1. December 2, 2014 – Regular Meeting
The minutes were grammatically corrected.
Motion was made to accept the minutes of the December 2, 2014, regular meeting as amended.
The motion was made by Mr. William Vees
The motion was seconded by Mr. Robert Dickinson
The motion carried unanimously
C. NEW BUSINESS
1. Nevers Road Sewer Extension (Approval)
Mr. Fred Shaw presented this application on behalf of the Town. Mr. Shaw explained that the Town is planning to complete a road improvement project on Nevers Road in the area of three properties (258 Nevers Road, 268 Nevers Road and 290 Nevers Road). The project includes the extension of the sanitary sewer; Sewer laterals would be installed for each property and be extended to the property lines. A sewer assessment would be subsequently levied for each property. Included with the Agenda was a list showing how those properties will be assessed and what will be the Town’s share of that cost (see Exhibit A). The property owner may choose to pay off the assessment charge up front or extend the payments over a fifteen year period at an annual interest rate of 2%.
Mr. Shaw distributed a copy of the project report provided by the Engineering Department (see Exhibit B). A new septic system was installed in 2010 at 290 Nevers Road; based on as-builts for this property, there are apparent limitations in available leaching area for the septic system and there is no reserve area for future use.
The existing septic system at 268 Nevers Road is inadequate and does not meet the current health code. A new septic tank was recently installed in 2013 but the leaching system is an old cesspool whose condition is suspect. The property owner has expressed interest in connecting to the sanitary sewer if it is extended.
There is no available information on the location or condition of the septic system at 258 Nevers Road. The availability to connect to the sanitary sewer at some point in the future would be advantageous for this property given the topography of the wetlands; a design system will be required.
Mr. Fred Shaw reported that he sent out a letter to the properties owners informing them that the application to extend the sewer on Nevers Road was going to be considered by the WPCA this evening and that they may attend the meeting for the opportunity to learn more about this project and to address any questions or concerns that they may have to the Authority. In this letter they were also informed of what the sewer assessment will be.
Mr. Shaw explained that currently the regulations require that if the Town installs the sewer, the property owner will be assessed up front regardless of whether they connect.
Mr. Joseph Candeias of 258 Nevers Road, South Windsor was in attendance this evening. He expressed interest in connecting to the sanitary sewer if it is extended. Chairman Aries asked Mr. Shaw to approach the property owner at 290 Nevers Road and find out what is her position on this matter.
Motion was made to table this matter for further discussion at the next meeting subject to Mr. Fred Shaw contacting the owner of 290 Nevers Road, South Windsor.
The motion was made by Mr. Donald Antaya
The motion was seconded by Mr. William Vees
The motion carried unanimously
2. Sewer System Evaluation Survey (Wright-Pierce Discussion)
Included with the Agenda was a copy of the Executive Summary of the Sewer System Evaluation Survey provided by the Consultant Engineer Firm, Wright-Pierce (see Exhibit C). Ms. Lisa Muscanell-DePaola of Wright-Pierce was in attendance and presented an overview of the project. She explained that the Sewer System Evaluation Study (SSES) work included various field activities to identify sources of excess water including smoke testing, manhole inspections, sewer main inspections and house inspections. The
smoke testing, manhole inspections, and sewer main inspections were performed throughout portions of the Town of South Windsor. The smoke testing efforts identified two storm water catch basins that were directly connected to the sewer system; the Town of South Windsor WPCA was made aware of the findings.
She explained that the manhole inspections identified 7 manholes with approximately a total of 53,000 gallons per day (gpd) of infiltration that required immediate attention due to the severity of the defects. These manholes were rehabilitated as a Change Order to the Manhole Rehabilitation project in summer 2014. Also, there were 23 manholes with a total of approximate 10,000 gpd of infiltration found that should be addressed in the next five years. Wright-Pierce discovered that truss pipe is a prevalent pipe material found in many of the sewersheds within the SSES Priority Areas. It is recommended that the Town plan out a cost effective rehabilitation program to maintain the structural integrity of the sewer collection system. Other areas of Town with truss pipe should be identified and
prioritized for CCTV inspection. Approximate 3,100 linear feet of truss pipe with defects should be repaired within the next year in order to prevent potential failure. Also, the SSES identified roughly 90 defective pipe segments with structural and or operation and maintenance defects. These deficiencies are recommended to be rehabilitated in a phased approach over the course of several construction projects and fiscal years. The Town would be eligible for Clean Water Funding for approximately 2/3 of the total construction cost; approximately 1/3 of the total construction cost would not be funded by the CT DEEP because the pipe segments were not identified as sources of infiltration.
A proposed capital cost improvement plan was received (see Exhibit D).
3. Arc Flash RFP Results (Discussion)
Mr. Fred Shaw reported that the Town solicited proposals from qualified engineering firms to perform an Arc Flash hazard assessment for Town-owned facilities. He explained that Arc Flash is a fault condition whereby there is a release of energy that can cause physical injury and even death. It is a requirement of OSHA that the Town makes sure that its employees are protected against arc flash. The arc flash analysis is an attempt to make sure that the Town employees, and contractors understand any arc flash hazardous risks. The intent is to obtain technical and advisory services for analyzing current arc flash hazards and to meet current requirements and standards of OSHA; and also to make recommendations as to what can the Town do to reduce the risks and keep Town employees and contractors safe from
injury while working on or near equipment that could become energized.
The Town selected two engineering firms, Current Solutions, P.C. and Woodard & Curran, as qualified to provide the arc flash study. Both engineering firms were selected for interviews relative to the design work necessary to implement this project. Following the presentations made by each of these two firms, the Town interview panel will need more time to make a decision. Mr. Shaw explained that in the case of Current Solutions, the proposal to do the Water Pollution Control Facility and the pump stations came out to be $28,900; the Woodard & Curran proposal came out to be $45,992. This item was added to the Agenda in anticipation that a firm was going to be selected to do this project; however, the Town interview panel has to further review the information that was gathered and to
contact references provided by each firm.
Ms. Vicki Paliulis expressed that there is a variation of total costs; Fuss & O’Neil has the highest bid (see Exhibit E). She asked if there is a reason or perhaps any disclaimer included. Mr. Shaw responded that there was a very wide variation of total costs. Each engineering firm had the opportunity to write out any exceptions that they had in with regard to the specifications outlined in the RFP. There were no exceptions concerning the scope of work. Mr. Shaw will report back to the
Authority once a decision is been made.
4. FY 2015/2016 Budget (Discussion)
a. FY 2014/2015 – Unplanned Expenditures
Included with the Agenda was a copy of the unplanned expenses 2015 FYTD (see Exhibit F). Mr. Shaw explained that last year, he presented a similar list of some of the unplanned expenditures encountered during that fiscal year. Many of the funds for this unplanned work will come out of the O&M budget; but some of them will be covered by the reserves for equipment.
b. Locker Room Modifications
As previously reported, Mr. Shaw explained that the men’s locker room needs to be redesigned. The orientation of the lockers and the benches makes it very difficult for the staff as they are bumping to each other; it’s a very uncomfortable situation. Included with the Agenda was a copy of the estimated cost for the redesign of the men’s locker room (see Exhibit G). It seems to be much more room provided for the women’s locker room and shower facilities. Therefore, the plan is to extend
the men locker facilities into the area that is unoccupied by the women lockers facility. The architect determined that there was going to be a cost within the neighborhood of $52,000 for this project; however, he did not include his engineering cost or construction phase cost which will be about $4,500. Mr. Shaw explained that certainly this is something that could be proposed as a budgetary item next fiscal year, however, he was seeking approval to be able to start this project rather than wait another six to seven months to begin the project; there are sufficient funds in the capital reserves to cover this project.
Motion was made to authorize the expenditure of funds not to exceed $60,000 for this project for bidding phase services and construction phase.
The motion was made by Mr. Donald Antaya
The motion was seconded by Mr. Richard Siedman
The motion carried unanimously
D. COMMUNICATIONS AND REPORTS
1. Secondary Clarifier Improvements
Mr. Fred Shaw reported that this project contract was not awarded as the proposal received was over the estimated budget figure. Much of the cost overrun was attributable to cold weather requirements of the concrete work. It was determined that this project can be done during the warmer times of the year and thereby significantly reduce the construction cost. The WPCA previously gave approval to make some modifications to the specifications and rebid the project. A meeting was held with the consultant engineer to make changes to the requirements of the project; Mr. Shaw is expecting a draft of the specifications within the next two weeks to rebid the project.
E. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION (Items not on the agenda)
Mr. Wilfredo Garcia, Town Employee in the Water Pollution Control Facility was in attendance this evening. He explained that he is going to be part of the Union contract negotiating team. They are in the process of sending an official letter for negotiations at the end of January. Mr. Garcia wanted to know who to address the letter to, as there was some discussion with the board about maybe negotiating the contract directly with the WPCA.
Mr. Shaw responded that through an agreement between the Town and the WPCA, this responsibility of negotiating a contract with the Union was delegated to the Town Manager. Therefore, the letter should be addressed to the Town Manager. However, the Town Council had been approving all of the union agreements. Chairman Richard Aries explained that this matter was previously discussed when the Town Manager was seeking approval of the current union contract for the treatment plant employees, and the Town Council rejected the agreement at first. There was some discussion about perhaps having the Town Manager report his success in negotiating union contracts for Pollution Control employees to the WPCA for approval of the contract, rather than reporting to the Town Council. Mr. Shaw will pursue this
matter with the Town Manager.
Councilor Stephen Wagner was in attendance this evening and reported that the Town passed a resolution listing the terms for each member of the Water Pollution Control Authority.
F. BILLS, CHANGE ORDERS, DISBURSEMENTS
None
G. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
1. Proposed Sewer User Charge Abatement Program/Ordinance - (Discussion)
Chairman Richard Aries reported that he met with Mr. Fred Shaw and Attorney Keith Yagaloff with regards to the proposed sewer user charge abatement program. Attorney Yagaloff has pointed out that the Authority can proceed with the implementation of this program as envisioned; however, he suggested for the Authority to turn to the Human Services Department and have them make their determination on their own of who will qualify for this program and then refer them to the WPCA for final approval. A meeting will be scheduled with the Human Services staff to further discuss the implementation of the program.
H. MOTION TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION TO DISCUSS PENDING CLAIMS - None
I. ADJOURNMENT
Motion was made to adjourn the meeting at 8:53 p.m.
The motion was made by Mr. Richard Siedman
The motion was seconded by Mr. William Vees
The motion carried unanimously
Respectfully submitted,
__________________________
Ether A. Diaz
Recording Secretary
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