City Council

CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP CITY COUNCIL ROOM TUESDAY, JULY 22, 2003 6:00 P.M. PRESENT : Commissioner Thomas Curley, DPS Kenneth Klotz, Mayor Commissioner Michael Lenz, Finance Commissioner Thomas McTygue, DPW Commissioner Stephen E. Towne, Accounts ALSO PRESENT: Phil Klein, Supervisor STAFF PRESENT : Deborah Harper, Deputy Commissioner, Accounts Hank Kuczynski, Deputy Mayor CALL TO ORDER Mayor Kenneth Klotz called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. with the Pledge of Allegiance. EXECUTIVE SESSION Commissioner Michael Lenz moved and Commissioner Stephen Towne seconded to adjourn to executive session at 6:00 p.m. for discussions on litigation. Ayes all. Council members returned at 6:05 p.m. and reported that no action was taken. ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCE Glenville Option Commissioner Thomas McTygue said this would be a short meeting tonight to discuss two options for the alternative water source B Amsterdam and Glenville. He said another workshop would be scheduled for next week to discuss other options. He noted that Deputy Mayor Joe Emanual, Amsterdam, was present this evening and available for questions. Rich Straut, Barton & Loguidice, informed Council members that a preliminary assessment had been done on the Glenville option and they had not gone into a lot of detail as of yet. He said he spoke to the Commissioner of Public Works for Glenville and the Commissioner informed him that Glenville does sell water outside of their town at a rate of $2.35 per thousand gallons. He said there is a 12-inch water main going from Glenville to the Town of Ballston and that 12-inch line would not be suitable to serve the City. He said it would require a large water main. He said Glenville is currently undergoing some renovations at their water treatment plant but those renovations and expansion would not meet the City=s needs. He said additional work on the water treatment plant would be required if the City was to obtain water from Glenville. Rich Straut said the cost for the City for the Glenville option at a minimum would be $2.35 per thousand gallons. He said additionally the City would need to build a water line, estimated to be 18 miles, to the City from Glenville. He said it appears the Glenville option would be the most expensive option, therefore, he did not believe it made much sense to go any further with that alternative. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked what Glenville had submitted as a proposal. He said the only other information he had on this matter was a statement from a Peter Kent, retired commissioner from Niskayuna, at the public hearing stating that water could be obtained from Glenville. He asked what other information had since become available. Rich Straut said he met with the Glenville Public Works Commissioner but there was no written proposal. He said the Glenville wholesale rate was $2.35 per thousand gallons to outside Page 1 of 4 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 22, 2003 customers. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked about the Aadd ons@. Rich Straut said in a memo from the Department of Public Works dated June 24 those costs were detailed. Commissioner Thomas McTygue reminded everyone that all of these questions will be answered in the DEIS. He said Rich Straut is in the process of addressing all of the comments raised during the public comment period. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked again about the add ons. Rich Straut said the city=s cost for distribution is based on water usage as detailed in the DEIS. He said the cost for the City would be $1.04 per thousand gallons whole sale rate. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said the memo sent by Commissioner Stephen Towne dated July 18 which had a chart in it seeking additional information had already been answered in the June 24 memo. He said Commissioner Stephen Towne was asking for the same information. Rich Straut explained that the cost of production includes bringing the water from the supply source, treatment, pumping it to the distribution point and maintenance of the plant. He said the cost of distribution is the remainder of items including delivering the water to the residents, administration costs and maintenance of the distribution system. He said there are two separate costs that Council members should keep in mind B cost of production and cost of distribution. He said Council members should be looking at the alternatives keeping in mind the cost of production vs. the cost of purchasing the water. He said for the City alternative the cost is $1.04 for distribution. He said if the County were to deliver the water to the City and because the pressure would be too low the City would need to add 20 cents per gallon to increase that pressure. He said if the City maintains its existing sources of water supply and treatment facilities for backup, the cost would then increase to between $1.54 and $1.74 per thousand gallons. Mayor Kenneth Klotz asked if the original DEIS dealt with the Glenville options. Rich Straut said no. Mayor Kenneth Klotz clarified that Rich Straut believes that the Glenville option would be the most expensive. Rich Straut said yes. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked why the Glenville option was now being considered. Rich Straut said because it came up during the public comment period and the City is required to address comments made during that time and also because there was a public scoping session. He said the Council has also directed his firm to examine all options. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked if it was being considered because it came up during the public comment period or because of the scoping session. He said while he did not attend the public scoping session, the first time he heard of this option was during the public hearing. He said the gentleman who spoke during the public hearing said there could be a substantial savings for the City. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked for clarification again on the costs. He said as he understood it the cost would be $1.04 plus 20 cents for pumping pressure and 50 cents to maintain the exiting facilities for the add on costs. He said he had asked for 2003 blended rate. Rich Straut said the 2003 rates were not used because all throughout the DEIS process 2002 rates had been used and there needed to be some consistency. He said those numbers could be escalated though if the Council so desired. Rich Straut said the production cost for the Saratoga Lake option is $1.50 per thousand gallons. He suggested the Council members look at the DEIS in Appendix AO@. He said on the bottom of each option it lists the cost for the typical homeowner. He said the cost for the typical homeowner for the Saratoga Lake option would be $145 per year for production and distribution. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked if there were any other costs. Rich Straut said everything was included in that amount. He said they used an average of 73,000 gallons per year. Commissioner Stephen Towne said the cost would be slightly more than $200 for the Saratoga Lake alternative for the average homeowner. Rich Straut agreed. Rich Straut then displayed a map showing the distance from Glenville to the City. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked if the existing pipe from Glenville to the Town of Ballston was adequate. Rich Straut said there is currently a 12 inch pipe line that is not adequate for the City=s needs Page 2 of 4 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 22, 2003 Mayor Kenneth Klotz asked what was the target date for a comprehensive response to these issues. Rich Straut said he was not sure, however, it would probably be within eight to ten weeks. Commissioner Thomas Curley asked if the 12 inch line was not adequate what was the appropriate size. Rich Straut said at least 24 inches but probably 30 inches. Amsterdam Option Rich Straut said the Commissioner Thomas McTygue did receive a proposal from Amsterdam and they are willing to provide water from the Town of Providence. He said Amsterdam has the ability to supplement the City=s system but not to meet the City=s needs entirely. He said they could provide three mgpd of raw water. He said the reservoir is about 14 miles away, however, laying pipes along the roadways would be about 20 miles of pipe. He said this alternative does not meet the City=s needs for reliability, amount or redundancy; therefore, it was difficult to do a comparison. Mayor Kenneth Klotz clarified that the other alternatives meet the City=s needs. Rich Straut said yes. Commissioner Thomas Curley clarified that the City pumps an average of 4.7 mgpd with a peak in the summer of 7.5 mgpd. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said yes. Rich Straut said the cost for the raw water from Amsterdam would be 15 cents per thousand gallons making the estimated cost to the City $164,000 per year. He pointed out that the raw water from Saratoga Lake or the upper Hudson would be at no cost to the City. He said the City would be required to construct the pipe either way. He said the Amsterdam water treatment plant is currently being upgraded to meet their demands but that upgrade will not meet the City=s needs. He said he did not believe this alternative was an equivalent. Commissioner Thomas Curley said it was his understanding the cost of laying a 30 inch pipe was about one million dollars per mile. Rich Straut agreed. Commissioner Michael Lenz clarified that when evaluating the alternatives the minimum gallons would be 5.7 mgpd on an annual average with the high of 11 mgpd on a single day. Rich Straut agreed. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked about the migration level. He asked what would it be with the alternatives and when would the City completely rely on the new system. Rich Straut said the DEIS does not address complete reliance, however, there was a phasing in time period. He said he would need to review the DEIS to find those answers. Rich Straut said he also believe that had been addressed in a memo. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked Commissioner Thomas McTygue for a copy of that memo. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said under current conditions, if the City was using Saratoga Lake as a source, it would not be pumping out of the lake. He said the existing Bog Meadow and Loughberry Lake sources are enough to meet the City=s needs. He said the City would probably pump from the lake during the summer months only and in the first year or two it could be between one million and one and a half million gallons per day. Commissioner Stephen Towne said there was a drought in 1999. Rich Straut said the drought of record as so noted in the DEIS was in 1964. Commissioner Stephen Towne asked if this was 1999, what would the City be drawing from the new system. Rich Straut said that would be difficult to say but it could be one million gallons per day. Commissioner Thomas McTygue said it was his intention to have another workshop next week to discuss the County agreement. He said Rich Straut needs more time to review the County proposal and their engineering report. Joe Emanual, Deputy Mayor, Amsterdam, said he appreciated the opportunity to address the Council. He said Amsterdam is interested in assisting the City if the City=s needs can be met. He said they could supply three mgpd with little environmental impact. He said the water would come from within the Adirondack Park. He said Page 3 of 4 City of Saratoga Springs City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes Tuesday, July 22, 2003 there is the potential to pump more than three billion gallons per day from that source. He said they were interested in maintaining a dialogue with the City and if possible to be partners in this venture. He also noted that the most of the line would be gravity fed. NEXT MEETING It was agreed that Council members would check their schedules and if possible another workshop would be held next Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Thomas McTygue moved and Mayor Kenneth Klotz seconded to adjourn the workshop session at 6:45 p.m. Ayes all. There being no further business, Mayor Kenneth Klotz adjourned the workshop at 6:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kathy Moran Clerk Approved: Page 4 of 4