WMAC Meeting Minutes, February 23, 2010
Attendees: David Crosby – Chair, David Hearne, Paul Lauenstein, Rory McGregor – Secretary, Len Sekuler – Vice-Chair, Bob Weeks
Guests: Eric Hooper – Superintendent, DPW, Leah Stanton – Project Manager, Weston & Sampson, Barbara Cook – Senior Associate, Weston & Sampson
1. The minutes from the January 21 WMAC meeting were approved as amended.
2. The proposed water bill insert was approved for use in future mailings of water bills to town residents and businesses.
3. Bob Weeks reported that the Sharon Historical Society received a water bill for $45. They used only 450 gallons. Bob questioned the $45 in the price chart on the water bill, saying that the minimum should be $15 for a quarterly water bill or $30 for a six-month water bill.
4. Dave Hearne reported that he had met with Bill Fowler, Town Treasurer, on the subject of Water Department transition to an Enterprise Account. They reviewed the current chart of accounts; Dave noted that it is not broken down in a way that he thought would make the most sense, namely: production costs, supply (transmission) costs, and overhead costs. Barbara Cook said that she could show us examples of how other towns, such as Newburyport, have structured their Enterprise accounts. Paul Lauenstein suggested that we talk with Mansfield and Foxboro about their approaches. Both of those towns report their respective Water Departments’ financial results in their annual town reports, and Sharon should do so as well. One objective in establishing these accounts is to track line item expenses over time, such as treatment chemicals and electricity.
As an Enterprise Fund, the Water Dept can maintain a “Stabilization Fund” of up to $5 million in order to smooth out fluctuations in water rates charged to customers.
Dave Hearne asked how other towns value infrastructure. He noted that Sharon’s infrastructure is valued at $12 million, which he feels does not reflect the true value of all the pipes, wells, pumping stations, and water tanks that service our town.
5. Weston & Sampson is preparing the Water Master Plan for Sharon. Three of the submittals, which address Demand Analysis, Supply, and Infrastructure, are now posted on the FTP website which they set up. David Crosby has emailed instructions to all WMAC members on procedure to access the website.
Weston & Sampson has proposed a prioritized schedule of pipe replacement projects which will take 5 to 10 years to complete, based on available funds. Phase A has 6 projects totaling $7 million plus the High Pressure Service District proposal at $3.4 million and Phase B has 5 projects totaling $4.6 million. Phase A concentrates on transmission pipes on Main Street, Massapoag Ave, Pond Street, and East Street. Phase B addresses neighborhoods with older pipes, such as the Brook – Glendale Roads area. Reasons for each project and its relative priority will be added to the summary sheet.
Water tank maintenance has become a much more expensive cost to towns in recent years. The 3 tanks comprised of steel structures were last painted in 1996. They will probably need full rehabilitation within the next 10 years, which may cost almost as much as replacement. The Upland Road Tank, which is built of concrete, is old and in need of replacement; temporary repairs are needed and will cost up to $80,000; replacement cost will be on the order of $1 million.
Well maintenance over the next 10 years will cost over $2 million, with half of that allocated to a major repair of Well #2 and almost $400,000 to Well #3.
6. The next meeting will be on Thursday, March 24th, at 7:30pm at the Community Center.
Respectfully submitted,
Rory McGregor