Water & Sewer Commission

Town of Mount Airy Water and Sewer Commission Meeting Minutes February 6, 2019 Commission members in attendance: Dick Swanson, Council Liaison Peter Helt, Mark Moxley, Karl Munder and Ron Runkles. Fred Goundry resigned from the Commission. Bill Butts (Planning Commission) attended the meeting. Members expressed their appreciation for Fred's contributions to the W&S. Minutes: Ron Runkles moved to approve the minutes of the December 5, 2018 meeting. Seconded by Mark Moxley and the motion passed unanimously. The Commission did not meet in January Old Business: Stormwater Management Update: The Merridale Gardens pond restoration should be complete by the end of March. Estimated acres of remediation at East/West Pond (formally called Prospect Road) is 58.7 at an estimated cost of $600k. County and Town staff met with homeowners with homes located on the Twin Ridge dam to get their approval of the proposed project before submitting the permit request. Rainfall & Tornado Impact on Infrastructure: Dick Swanson distributed copies of the current WWTP flow data and rainfall totals for the past 30 days and last 12 months. The 2018 average WWTP flow was 1,026k gpd due to the record 2018 rainfall causing high inflow into the sewer system. Although January 2019 rainfall was only slightly above normal, WWTP flow continued to be unusually high at 1,270k gpd. The W&S will continue to monitor the situation. Previously the Commission recommending targeting high inflow hot spots and funding remediation projects in the FY 2020 budget to address the high WWTP flow. Education – Flushables Are Not Flushable: Dick Swanson presented the updated W&S “Respect your sewer and it will respect you” presentation at the February Town Council meeting. The Council recommended that the slides be posted on the Town website and work with Town staff member Gina Campanile to post it. New Business: FY 2018 Financials & FY 2020 Budget: The Chair noted that the FY 2018 audited financial results including a loss of $506k (includes depreciation) ) and statement of cash flow (excludes depreciation) that reflects actual cost of capital items was a loss of $404k. Also, it was noted that $437k was transferred from the reserve accounts to operating funds to pay for the restoration of water tower #1. Given the FY 2018 loss and the reduction of reserves may indicate a trend, the Commission will continue to monitor the situation but does recommend any action at this time. Nitrogen Runoff Statistics for Developed Areas: Dick Swanson read the following quote to point out that development within the Chesapeake Bay watershed negated the nitrogen reduction initiatives to reduce nitrogen levels in the Bay. “Nitrogen runoff from stormwater in developed areas increased from 37.92 million pounds in 2009 to 39.58 million pounds in 2017. The average per-acre runoff decreased slightly from 7.35 to 7.29 pounds during that period as regulatory oversight increased, but that reduction was more than canceled out by a 275,000-acre increase in developed land.” Source: Bay Journal October 2018. Other Business: Update on Grass Clipping & Yard Waste Ordinance: The Town Council accepted the W&S recommended changes to Ordinance No. 2019-1 as stated in the December minutes. Master Plan Update: Bill Butts requested that the W&S review the 2013 Comprehensive Master Plan Implementation Status/Action Plan Spreadsheet and send update in the status of Master Plan initiatives relating to the Water & Sewer Commission. The Commission will put this on the March agenda and send any changes to the Planning Commission. Adjournment: Peter Helt moved to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Mark Moxley and passed by unanimous vote. The meeting was adjourned at 8:00 pm. W&S Meeting: The next W&S meeting is March 6, 2019 in Town Hall at 7:00 pm. Prepared by Dick Swanson, Secretary