City Council Worksession

Watertown City Council Work Session Mayor Michael Walters Kay Thul Adam Pawelk Fred McGuire Dan Schuette 5/9/2023 - Minutes 1. Call To Order And Roll Call Mayor Walters called the Watertown City Council work session to order at 5:30 p.m. on May 9, 2023, in the council chambers of City Hall. Council Members Present: Michael Walters, Adam Pawelk, Kay Thul, and Fred McGuire. Council Members Absent: Dan Schuette. Staff Present: City Administrator Jake Foster, Public Utilities Superintendent Doug Kammerer, and Administrative Services Director Maggie Reisdorf. Others Present: None. 2. New Business 2.I. Cured In Place Pipe And WWTF Updates CIPP Foster introduced this item to the City Council. He stated that the public utilities superintendent, Kammerer, would be providing an overview and update on the City’s Cured in Place Pipe (CIPP) Project and the City’s Wastewater Treatment Facility Expansion Project. Kammerer started with the City’s Cured in Place Pipe project. He informed that in 1994, the City had just completed a wastewater treatment plant update and started to investigate addressing inflow/infiltration (I/I) issues. He stated that the city was noticing with heavy rains large amounts of clean water getting into the wastewater system. Kammerer said that the result was that the clean water was adding to the wastewater and adding to the amount of water needing to be treated. He explained that the clean rainwater was getting into the system by crack in the old clay piping system and by rainwater drain connections. Kammerer provided a summary of the city’s process, starting in 1994, of ongoing system maintenance which included a rotating schedule of televising and cleaning the lines. He explained that when pipes were monitored for cracks, breaks, and roots. He said that over the past 30 years (off and on), the city  that the clean rainwater was getting into the system by crack in the old clay piping system and by rainwater drain connections. Kammerer provided a summary of the city’s process, starting in 1994, of ongoing system maintenance which included a rotating schedule of televising and cleaning the lines. He explained that when pipes were monitored for cracks, breaks, and roots. He said that over the past 30 years (off and on), the city has been putting aside money and doing Cured in Place Pipe lining within sections of piping each year. He reviewed the process of CIPP lining, its purpose and how it works. He informed that in 2023, the city had finished CIPP lining all the clay system sections throughout the city. Kammerer explained that the city has not eliminated all of its I/I issues. He stated that clean water is still seeping in through cracks in private lines and from foundation drains. Kammerer informed that CIPP lining was a preferred process of reducing I/I and maintaining the integrity of the lines longer instead of digging up the lines for financial reasons. He said that replacement of all the piping would have cost millions of dollars and would have required the digging up of streets to access the lines. Kammerer said that the city has an ongoing and rotating maintenance and inspection schedule in place moving forward. Kammerer informed that the city has 30 miles of sanitary sewer and 36 miles of water pipe. Kammerer informed that the city will start to focus more on televising the city’s storm sewer system and its ongoing maintenance. McGuire asked about private lines. Kammerer informed that private lines start at the main line connection point and go into the house and that the line is the responsibility of the property owner. WWTF Project Update Kammerer provided an update on the Wastewater Treatment Facility project. He reviewed pictures of the project progress with the City Council. Walters explained that the project was planned in accordance with upcoming and new state standards, as well as needing to increase capacity for additional city growth. Walters thanked Kammerer for the update. Kammerer informed that he would like to have a tour with the City Council in June or July. Kammerer thanked the public utilities staff for their dedication. 3. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 6:13 pm. 309 Lewis Avenue South; P.O. Box 279, Watertown, MN 55388 __________________________________________________________ Mike Walters, Mayor ATTEST:__________________________________________ Margaret Reisdorf, Admin. Services Director ATTEST:__________________________________________ Margaret Reisdorf, Admin. Services Director