City Council

CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY FEBRUARY 21, 2002 Present: Mayor Kenneth Klotz Commissioner of Finance, Michael Lenz Commissioner of Public Works, Thomas McTygue Commissioner of Public Safety, Thomas Curley Commissioner of Accounts, Stephen Towne Staff Present: Deputy Mayor Hank Kuczynski City Attorney Jeffrey Wait Deputy Commissioner Bruce Brown Also Present: Supervisor Phil Klein Absent: Deputy Commissioner Christine Gillmett-Brown Deputy Commissioner Deborah Harper Deputy Commissioner Robert King Supervisor Anthony Scirocco CALL TO ORDER Mayor Kenneth Klotz called the meeting to order at 7 PM. Mayor Klotz called upon Commissioner McTygue because he requested this meeting.. DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS Commissioner McTygue called upon the Director of Public Works, William McTygue for an opening statement. William McTygue said that over the years he has had the pleasure of working with former City Public Works Director Joe O’Neill on various water initiatives including this project. He said this Special City Council meeting is a highly anticipated presentation by the City’s consulting Engineers, Barton & Loguidice. He said that tonight’s meeting primarily consists of the initial presentation by the City’s consultants of the City’s proposed Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the City’s water source development project. He said that on December 4, 1995, the City Council commissioned a comprehensive study of the City’s long-term water needs. The results of that study indicated that Saratoga Lake had the source capacity potential to meet the long-term water demands of the City of Saratoga Springs. On March 21, 2000 the City Council unanimously agreed to further study the City’s long-term water needs with its decision to undertake a comprehensive investigation of the possibility of using Saratoga Lake as a future water supply source. He explained that last year, the instructions to the consulting engineers were expanded by requesting additional study and information that would identify other alternatives that might be available to the City in its search for a new water supply. He said that tonight the results of those investigations are being presented. Special City Council Meeting Water Source Development Project DEIS Presentation February 21, 2002 He said when the City first initiated the search for an alternative water source, the council was comprised of former Mayor Almeda C. Riley, Commissioner of Finance J. Michael O’Connell, Commissioner of Accounts Ed Valentine, and current Commissioners (Public Safety) Curley and (Public Works) McTygue. He explained that since 1995 there has been a unprecedented City growth including new buildings downtown, an expanding retail and commercial business environment within the City’s boundaries, and the addition of dozens of new major residential sub-divisions especially in the City’s outer districts, all demanding use of our current water resources. He said that with all these exciting growth opportunities within our City over the past six years, the one thing that has not changed is the need for a new water supply source. He said the investigation for a new water supply began several years ago with the upgrading of the City’s current system, and safe yield, and by the decision to take a comprehensive look at the City’s long term water needs. He said that in 1996 and again in 2000, these initiatives taken by the City were considered simply good planning. He said a stream of citywide growth and economic good fortune has placed this issue on the list of top priorities facing Saratoga Springs. He said one has to look no further than the front page of the February 20 New York Times to recognize the issue facing the City today: that the Northeast is facing the possibility of draught conditions not seen since the turn of the century. He said the water source project is timely, deserves the full attention of every resident of our community, and a considerable amount of time has been taken to investigate it. He said the City has been diligent in approaching this problem, and the information in this DEIS which is about to be presented is an important step toward a solution to the City’s long term water needs. He introduced Kevin Voorhees of Barton & Loguidice and Doug Ward, legal Counsel from Young & Sommer. Mr. Voorhees made the presentation. He said that the Draft Environmental Impact Study for the Saratoga Springs Water Source Development Project has been completed. He said the City of Saratoga Springs is the lead agency and the council must review the entire Draft Environmental Impact Statement, decide whether the document is ready to be released to the public, and then set a public hearing. He said that the document is around 350 pages plus 25 maps and 13 appendices separately bound. He indicated the documents that were presented to each Commissioner and to the Mayor and gave a brief overview of them. He explained that the documents include a table of contents, a glossary of terms, and a separate executive summary. He described the City’s current water situation as consisting of three water sources including the Geyser Crest Well Field, Loughberry Lake, and the Bog Meadow Brook. He said that the water source capacity is not adequate to meet the projected long-term needs and demands of this City. He said that currently the maximum demand is 8.1 million gallons per day, and in thirty years this demand is expected to increase to around 11 million gallons per day. He said that if any one of the City’s water sources were to become unusable due to a toxic spill, the City has no alternative source to run to. Loughberry Lake, the City’s primary water source is particularly vulnerable because it is small, 4.5 square miles, located next to the Route 50 arterial, and has contaminated sediments on the bottom, which is a concern as demand increases, and also in drought conditions. Page 2 of 4 Special City Council Meeting Water Source Development Project DEIS Presentation February 21, 2002 He said that the City exceeded the regulations and requirements for public scoping by having a web page, having the scoping document available at public repositories, and soliciting comments. He said that every comment received was reviewed and responded to. This detailed scoping process led to a detailed examination of source alternatives. He presented an overview of the DEIS which included brief descriptions of the water source alternatives, the cost of using each alternative and an informative description of the process that would be involved with each one in order for the City to be able to use it. The alternatives described include the Saratoga Lake, the Upper Hudson River, Queensbury water, the Sacandaga Reservoir, Lake Lonely, the Interlaken Water System, and ground water source alternatives including the Colonie Channel, the Schenectady Primary Aquifer, and the Halfmoon Primary Aquifer. Saratoga Lake: Water would be drawn through a new pump station and through a new 30” raw water main to the City’s existing but upgraded water plant. The cost estimate in 2002 dollars is $17,090,000. Upper Hudson River: New intake and pumping station would be necessary along with 14 miles of pipeline and a new water main. The cost estimate in 2002 dollars is $59,180,000 Water from Queensbury: Queensbury water treatment plant would nave to be upgraded to handle the additional water through 14 miles of new pipeline. The City would no longer need their existing water treatment plant, so that would be decommissioned. The cost estimate in 2002 dollars is $33,280,000. Sacandaga Reservoir: An Intake and Raw water pump station would have to be built and 23 miles of new pipeline would be required to connect to the City’s water treatment plant. The Water Treatment Plant would have to be upgraded. The cost estimate in 2002 dollars is $35,220,000. Lake Lonely: This alternative option falls far short of having enough water to meet the needs of the City of Saratoga Springs. Cost not determined Interlaken Water System: This is a system of wells and it is not significant to meet the needs of the City of Saratoga Springs. Cost not determined Groundwater Source alternatives, including the Colonie Channel, the Schenectady Primary Aquifer, and the Halfmoon Primary Aquifer: He said that these alternatives were studied as a result of public inquiry from the release of the scoping document. He said that aquifers have potentially significant environmental impacts, higher cost, and are questionable in terms of technical feasibility. He said that in the case of Saratoga Springs another deterrent to using an aquifer is that the pipelines would have to be very long and that would increase the cost. The cost estimate in 2002 dollars is $52,300,000. Kevin Voorhees discussed each alternative in detail and said that the alternatives that require piping water through other communities would incur the annual expense of property tax for each community that the pipe passes through. Page 3 of 4 Special City Council Meeting Water Source Development Project DEIS Presentation February 21, 2002 He said that the project is an 11-step process and they are now in step 6. He said the City Council decides when the Draft EIS is ready for public review, and then the DEIS is printed and distributed to public repositories for review, a public notice is issued and the City Council sets a date for the public hearing. After the public hearing is held, the Final EIS is prepared which includes the public comments, responses and revisions to the DEIS resulting from the previous steps. Release of the Executive Summary (02-070) Kevin Voorhees said that an Executive Summary, a public synopsis, has been prepared that could be released to the public with City Council approval. He said that due to a limited quantity at this presentation, individuals requesting the document would have to sign for it. Commissioner Thomas McTygue moved and Mayor Kenneth Klotz seconded for City Council approval to release the Executive Summary of the Water Source Development Project Draft Environmental Impact Statement to the public. Ayes all EXECUTIVE SESSION Commissioner Thomas McTygue moved and Mayor Kenneth Klotz seconded to go to executive session to discuss a legal matter. Ayes all The City Council members returned from executive session and seeing no further business to be conducted, Mayor Klotz asked for a motion to adjourn. Commissioner Michael Lenz moved and Mayor Kenneth Klotz seconded to adjourn the meeting at 8:40 pm. Respectfully submitted, Nancy Wagner Clerk Adopted: Page 4 of 4