BWC Minutes

Meeting date: 
Tuesday, March 1, 2016

 

Wellfleet Board of Water Commissioners

Town Hall Conference Room

Tuesday, March 1, 2016, 6:00 PM

Commissioners Present:  Justina Carlson, Chair, Neil Gadwa, James Hood, Catharie Nass

Commissioners Absent:

Also Present: Gail Fergusson,

Chair Carlson called the meeting to order at 6:18 PM.

Manager’s Report

Manager Miteva presented her report and highlighted the information regarding the water leak that was detected and mitigated last week.  A leak detection contractor has been identified, and Secretary Spencer suggested proactive measures that may cut down on the risk of future leaks due to ineffective winterization practices in seasonal homes.

Communications Policy Review

Miteva reminded the Board of the BWC Communication Policy that is in place, in order to send a clear and unified message to the public.  Recent Banner articles were discussed as having potentially vague or misleading information.  Chair Carlson suggested discussing media relations more in depth at another meeting.

Status of Tower Painting & Repair

To date there is no resolution with Chicago Bridge & Iron regarding the repair work needed to mitigate the rusting seams on the water tower.  The Board discussed setting a deadline, after which additional action should be taken.  Waiting for CB&I to agree to any responsibility in the matter may cause the BWC to miss the window for repairing and repainting the tank, which should take place in the summer or fall for optimal painting conditions.

Miteva agreed to follow up with TA Terkanian in order to move the RFP process forward.

Warrant Article Recommendations

  1. ARTICLE I-5: FY 2017 Water Enterprise Budget:
    • Carlson moved to recommend the article; Nass seconded; the motion carried 3-0.
  2. ARTICLE II-13: Support Water Enterprise Fund:
    • Carlson moved to recommend the article; Gadwa seconded; the motion carried 3-0.
  3. ARTICLE II-26: Briar Lane Expansion Planning:
    • Nass moved to recommend the article; Gadwa seconded; the motion carried 3-0.
  4. ARTICLE III-3: Briar Lane Financing Through Special Assessments:
    • Carlson moved to recommend the article; Gadwa seconded; the motion carried 3-0.
  5. ARTICLE III-4: Briar Lane Financing Through Deferred Payments:
    • Carlson moved to recommend the article; Nass seconded; the motion carried 3-0.
  6. ARTICLE III-5: Briar Lane Financing Through Betterments:
    • Carlson moved to recommend the article; Gadwa seconded; the motion carried 3-0.
  7. ARTICLE III-7: Transfer of WMWS from DPW to TA Supervision:
    • Carlson moved to recommend the article; Nass seconded; the motion carried 3-0.

Commissioner Hood arrived after the voting had concluded.

Briar Lane/OCHS Expansion: Next Steps and Financial Model

The Board briefly discussed the newest proposal of bringing a water main to Outer Cape Health Services (OCHS) via School St rather than Briar Lane.  It is possible that this may be a less costly alternative since there is already a water main in place up to the intersection of School St and Rte. 6.

Hood updated the Board on the progress of the OCHS rebuilding project.  His sense was that the Board of Selectmen had reservations about a Wellfleet Municipal Water System (WMWS) expansion to OCHS.  He noted that the project may have to be reduced in scope in order to allow for a new well instead of connecting to Town water.  Gadwa suggested drilling a test well to ascertain the water quality available to OCHS and whether it’s even possible for it to have a viable water supply on site, or if OCHS has to connect to Town water no matter what.

Plans for Public Outreach

Chair Carlson suggested it may be in the best interest of the future of the WMWS to hold public sessions aimed at providing information and quelling concerns about past and present financing of the water system.  The Board agreed that such sessions would be timely prior to voting in May.

Minutes

Chair Carlson moved to approve the 2/16/16 BWC minutes as presented; Gadwa seconded; the motion passed 3-0. 

Correspondence

None

Topics of Future Concern

Agenda: March 15, 2016

Media Relations/messaging

Status of Tower Painting & Repair

Briar Lane/OCHS Expansion: Next Steps and Financial Model

Plans for Public Outreach

BWC member recruitment

Next Meeting:

The next meeting will take place on Tuesday, March 16, 2016 at 6:00 PM in the Town Hall Conference Room, 2nd floor.  

Adjournment

The meeting was adjourned at 7:37 PM.                          

Public Records Materials of 3/1/16

  1. WMWS Manager’s Report dated 3-1-16
  2. BWC Communication Policy
  3. Banner Articles
  4. Email from Steve Gazzano dated 2-25-16 re: water tank repair
  5. Compilation of 2016 Warrant Articles requiring BWC recommendation
  6. Mass General Laws, Chapter 40, Sections 42 G-K
  7. Letter to the BOS from Sally Deane of OCHS dated 2-19-16