Water & Wastewater Commission

Water/Wastewater Commission Meeting Minutes March 14th, 2018 J.A. Provencial Building 1200 Rindge Rd. Fitchburg, MA 01420 A meeting for the City of Fitchburg Water/Wastewater Commission was held on Wednesday March 14, 2018 at the J.A. Provencial Water Treatment Facility Building 1200 Rindge Rd, Fitchburg MA, 01420. The meeting commenced at 4:37 pm Members present: Lenny Laakso, Commissioner DPW Rick Healey Mike Mclaughlin George Siener Others present: John M. Deline., Deputy Commissioner of Water Jeff Murawski., Deputy Commissioner of Wastewater Jennifer Lambert Principal Clerk Water Office Members absent: None Item #1 Approval of last meetings minutes: Motion to approve minutes from February 14, 2018 meeting was granted by unanimous vote. Item #2 Public Forum: None Item #3 Water Division:  John started meeting off by giving updates on our Oak Hill Storage Tank. We will hopefully be putting the tank back online either March 15th or 16th, depending on the outcome of the bacteria testing. The tank is still leaking a little bit, but we will continue to evaluate the issue and speak to our Engineers Weston & Sampson and also DN Tanks who patched the leaks in the beginning.  John next informed the Commission that our Water Main Upgrade Project will resume in the spring. We have a few streets left over from last year, and will be adding a few small sections of main over on Westminster Hill Rd, and maybe a section on Jerry Street where water quality issues have been ongoing.  Water Meter Upgrade Project will start in July, we hope to complete the project within a years’ time. This upgrade will be replacing all meters and electronic registers and will we have a whole new system for meter reads. There will be no more driving around every month to get meter reads for billing purposes. The upgrade will most likely be a fixed network, but possibly cellular, whichever is better long term. Weston & Sampson is handling this part for us. We are waiting on Calvin Brooks, City Auditor and Trevor Bonilla, IT Dept. for the munis software upgrade, which will streamline our meter management as we will no longer have to enter everything manually.  Lastly, John presented the Commission with a draft version of FY19 water division budget. Not a lot of changes from last year’s budget just some minor adjustments. This first draft is for review only, as the numbers are a little off because the city has a contract with local 39 that’s yet to be approved. The MOA will be presented to the finance committee within the next week or two. Once it is approved I will have to redo the budget to reflect those changes and will have a better understanding of where we stand budget wise. Item #4 Wastewater Division:  Jeff updated the Commission on the ongoing SSU Project at the East Plant. The project is moving along, outdoor work will resume sometime in the next couple of weeks (weather permitting). We are still on track with final completion date of October 2019. Our next monthly Commission Meeting will take place at the East Wastewater Treatment Facility to give the Commission a chance to see the progress of the work being done.  Status updates were given on City Code Chapter 147 & “Rules and Regulations” and also the Consent Decree’s WWMP. Arcadis is assisting us with City Code to update storm water ordinances as well as sewer ordinances. Jeff mentioned the idea of having properties re- permitted (sewer inspection) when ownership changes hand. This would be impeding on transfers of real property and most likely would be met with harsh criticism by MA Association of Realtors. The Commission suggested addressing the worst cases as to where infiltration and inflow is taking place and start there. The Consent Decree’s Wastewater Management Plan (WWMP) is moving forward. Good Progress is being made on the Safety Audit which is the Lockout/Tagout Program at the East Plant.  A memorandum from Jeff was given to Commission Members summarizing a few minor modifications of the Sewer Rate Proposal that was presented by Mike Schrader at our last Commission Meeting February 14, 2018. Also, recommendation was given to brief city councilors on the proposed rate change, and that they be presented with the recommended rate proposal change that the Commission approved before the March 27th committee as a whole meeting. Item #5 Other Business:  The Water/Wastewater Commission will next meet at 4:00 pm for a quick tour of the SSU project with meeting starting at 4:30 pm, on April 11, 2018 at our Easterly Wastewater Treatment Facility, located on 24 Lanides Lane, Fitchburg MA, 01420. Meeting adjourned at 5:17 P.M.