Water & Sewer Commission

Town of Mount Airy Water and Sewer Commission Meeting Minutes – May 3, 2017 Commission members in attendance: Dick Swanson, Council Liaison Peter Helt, Ted Cisowski, Fred Goundry, Fred Mason, Mark Moxley, and Ron Runkles. The meeting was called to order at 7:02 pm. Barney Quinn, Town Engineer, attended the meeting. Minutes: Ron Runkles moved to approve the minutes of the April 5, 2017 meeting. Seconded by Peter Helt and the motion passed unanimously. Old Business: Drought Status: Dick Swanson updated the members on the drought status by distributing copies of Maryland's Drought Status: Current Conditions and 30 and 60 day mean precipitation maps. The data reflects a significant increase in rainfall over the last month and a positive impact on the local water table. The Commission decided that no action is required now and they will continue to monitor conditions. FY 2018 Budget: Dick Swanson pointed out that current draft FY 2018 W&S budget reflects a modest operating surplus of $18,000 and a capital deficit of approximately $575,000 to be funded through drawing down reserves and transferring the operating surplus to capital projects. Although the financial trend is negative, the members agreed to wait until preliminary numbers are available for FY 2017 before considering making any recommendations to the Mayor and Town Council. Water Tower #1: Barney Quinn, Town Engineer, provided the Commission with details of the proposed work to be performed to refurbish Water Tower #1. He made a brief presentation on the considerations involved in deciding to refurbish Water Tower #1 rather than replacing the the tower. The Town is planning a $600,000 renovation to the 230,000 gallon Water Tower #1 located next to the Bank of America. After reviewing the documentation and a lengthy discussion, the Commission reached consensus that the current plans should go forward. Therefore, no action was required by the Commission. New Business: SCADA: The current status/ performance of the Town's water and sewer monitoring system (SCADA) was brought up. Some members expressed concern about the operational effectiveness of the current system. Since up-to-date information was unavailable, the W&S will request a briefing on SCADA from the Town Engineer and the Director of Public Works. The Commission suggested that the briefing occur at the June meeting. Other Business: Dick Swanson reminded the members of the June 6th Carroll County Water Resource Coordination Council tour of the Merridale Gardens stormwater management pond which is one of the Carroll County stormwater management projects being performed to meet county-wide stormwater management permit requirements. The pond is located on Ridge Drive just past the Library. The tour will include an informative session on the planned restoration of the pond and is open to the public The group will arrive at approximately 2:30 pm for a half hour discussion and Q&A. This is a large restoration being performed as part of the stormwater agreement between Carroll County and the eight county municipalities. Adjournment: Peter Helt moved to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Ted Cisowski and passed by unanimous vote. The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 pm. W&S Meeting: The next W&S meeting is June 7, 2017 in Town Hall at 7:00 pm. Prepared by Dick Swanson, Secretary