Wellfleet Board of Water Commissioners
Minutes of Meeting of February 16, 2006
Senior Center Conference Room
Present: Mark Berry, Chair; Lynn Hiller, Moe Barocas and Jean Schaefer
Absent: Erik Mitchell
Chairman Mark Berry called the meeting to order at 7:07 p.m.
Summarization of Presentations by Paul Gabriel & Russ Tierney
Russell E. Tierney, Division Manager of Whitewater Inc. attended 2/2/06 BWC meeting and Paul Gabriel, co-founder of Environmental Partners Group attended 1/19/06 BWC meeting. All agreed that the information they presented was enlightening and very useful. The Board will include the knowledge into its overall understanding of the Wellfleet Municipal Water System (WMWS).
Both Mr. Gabriel and Mr. Tierney offered to provide additional information to the Board, which has not yet been received.
As the Board considered how to use the information provided by Mr. Gabriel and Mr. Tierney, additional discussion occurred concerning 1) reevaluation of rates and fees including determination of what data is needed to do the reevaluation, 2) determination of minimum number of customers required to support a self-sustaining water system (with little or no subsidy from the taxpayers), 3) what information the survey will provide, 4) whether the current situation of 3 to 4 different categories (based on rates & participation fees) of WMWS customers can be simplified, 5) Harborside Village (former Schuster’s Trailer Park) drinking water situation and their recently installed on-site water mains which makes them a source of potential WMWS customers with minimal cost, 6) effect, if any, of a reevaluation of rates and fees on the most
recently connected WMWS customers, 7) letter from Flying Fish Restaurant requesting hookup to the WMWS who is not an abutter to the water main.
The Board reviewed the current (FY 2006) and projected (FY 2007) expenses and debt service for the WMWS that is part of the proposed DPW Fiscal Year 2007 Budget. This budget will be presented at the 4/24/06 Annual Town Meeting.
In response to the 2/3/06 letter to Tim Smith, TA, (copied to Select Board) from Mark Berry, Chair BWC that requested access to all Town reports and files relating to the WMWS, Mr. Smith sent an email dated 2/13/06 to Jean Schaefer giving BWC representatives access to all the records of the various Town departments including the DPW and Whitewater, Inc.
Topics for discussion with Planning Board and Board of Health (BOH)
Joint meeting with the BWC and BOH is 3/22/06. Topics were defined. Discussion also included possible topics for a future joint meeting with the Planning Board.
Minutes of 2/2/06
Mark Berry moved to approve the minutes of February 2, 2006 as presented. Hiller seconded, and the motion carried 4-0.
Mail
Other Business
Topics discussed included 1) Survey to identify problem water areas and potential WMWS customers, 2) possibility of grant to finance mass water testing, 3) examination of Health Dept water tests, 4) Orlean’s offer to Eastham to supply drinking water to Eastham properties, if Eastham will finance and install the new water mains, 5) various scenarios of how to “market to the public” WMWS capacity expansion, 6) possible need for fire protection, 7) future municipal facilities (fire/police?) may need water, 8) DEP requirement for a backup well, 9) cost estimates for Master Plan stages updated (approximately 15% increase), 10) probable loss of water supply in emergency, 11) possibility of DPW staff obtaining necessary licenses to operate system in the future.
The next meeting of the BWC is scheduled for March 2, 2006 at 7 p.m. in the Conference Room of the Senior Center.
Adjournment
Mark Berry moved to adjourn; Lynn Hiller seconded; all approved 4-0. The meeting adjourned at 9:05 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
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Jean Schaefer, Board Secretary Mark Berry, Chairman
_____________________ Date
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