Water and Sewer Committee Minutes 11-17-2021

Water and Sewer Committee Minutes 11-17-2021

RUTLAND TOWN SELECTBOARD COMMITTEE MEETING

WATER AND SEWER COMMITTEE

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 17^th, 2021

The Water and Sewer Committee of the Rutland Town Selectboard met at 9:00 AM on Wednesday November 17^th, 2021, at the Rutland Town Municipal Town Hall. Present was Board Chair Mary Ashcroft, Board member Don Chioffi, Town Lister Howard Burges, Town Road Commissioner Byron Hathaway, Administrative Assistant Bill Sweet, Rob Stubbins and Robert Clark from Otter Creek Engineering. There was a conference call line with a publicly accessible and warned phone number in use.

• The committee reviewed the Post Road water line extension project
  1. Robert Clark from Otter creek Engineering was present and brought a set of plans to show the project scope in the area.
  2. Discussed different scopes of work from connecting to 1 additional house, up to including additional properties in the area.
  3. To go up to the farthest house with a reliable connection from the existing line is approximately 400 feet of 2” line. The shortest extension would be approximately 110 feet.
  4. Extending the full 400 feet comes with additional challenges of running into ledge during excavation.
  5. A bid document can be created which would allow for costs to be received for both alternatives.
  6. The 4 properties around the project are at 1400, 1401, 1423 and 1456 Post Road.
  7. A notice will be sent to each property owner giving them the opportunity to relay their interest of connecting to this line to the committee.
  8. The bid, approval and permitting process would put construction of the project in the spring.
  9. The committee is recommending bidding the 2 project possibilities, the 110-foot or the 400-foot extension. A notice will be sent to the 4 property owners to gauge interest.
  10. A contract for services with Otter Creek Engineering should be available for the full board to review at the next meeting. Bid documents could go out in December.
  11. The exact route of the 400-foot extension will be determined once we know what property owners are interested.
• The committee discussed the 3-acre rule affecting some town businesses.
  1. Robert Clark provided a list of properties in the Town effected by this new rule.
  2. A draft letter discussing the funding opportunities to help design these projects was provided by Robert Clark. Some suggestions were made for changes.
  3. Some of the properties have permits, which mean there is a collection system in existence. This would involve a retrofit rather than a complete system.
  4. Discussed the loan forgiveness program. The state rules need to be clarified on when the forgiveness kicks in. Prior to, or after, construction.
  5. A public meeting was proposed to help inform the affected property owners. The committee liked this idea, a date was not set but will likely be in early 2022.
• The committee discussed the possibility of a town wide water study, using state funds.
  1. Robert Clark confirmed there are funds available, but the process and goal are not clear yet.
• Discussed a small outstanding balance due to Master Excavating for the Randbury Road water line project.
  1. Robert Clark provided a summary of the final balance due. This will be provided to the board for approval at the next meeting.
• There is a consistent outstanding balance for a user in Flory Heights. The typical methods to clear the balance are not effective. We will discuss it with town counsel.

The meeting adjourned at 10:02 AM

Respectfully submitted, Bill Sweet