The Watuppa Water Board convened on November 16, 2022, approving the minutes from its August 9, 2022, and November 3, 2022, meetings. Mr. Clark presented proposed leak abatements, resulting in eight approvals and two denials, with a strong recommendation to address toilet leaks promptly. Discussions regarding water department pay rate increases and a general water rate increase were tabled due to ongoing union negotiations. A significant portion of the meeting focused on a Phase 22 Lead Service Replacement Loan Order for $4,675,000. This loan is critical for accessing Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding through the State Revolving Fund program, which is anticipated to provide a principal reduction of at least 30%. This strategic financing will enable the city to complete approximately $18.5 million worth of federally and state-mandated lead service replacement work with an estimated net loan cost of around $3 million. The board unanimously approved this loan order. Additionally, a $100,000 proposal from Woodward & Curran for a Lead Pipe Inventory and Public Engagement Grant, funded by EPA Region 1, was unanimously approved. This grant will help the department comply with the revised Lead and Copper Rule by October 16, 2024, without cost to ratepayers. Updates on ongoing projects included the completion of water main replacement on Atlantic Boulevard and a complex emergency situation on Brighton Avenue involving subsurface contamination. The meeting concluded with no other matters discussed.
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and we having approached the hour of 604 as advertised let me first pursue into the open meeting law any person may make an audio or video recording of this public meeting or may transmit the meeting through any medium attendees are therefore advised that such recordings or Transmissions are being made whether perceived or unperceived by those present and are deemed acknowledged and
0:30permissible and with no further ado I would ask item number one citizen input do we have any citizen input uh just for the record of uh call the role president uh oh I'm sorry I'm here now we can yep no citizens no citizens input we will move to item number two uh the minutes of the previous meeting which is May 31 2022.
1:13excuse me correct that I got the wrong answer thank you I thought that was a long time minutes of the previous meeting August 9th 2022 and November 3rd 2022 both of those meetings were tabled um having reviewed the packet online when it was received the chair didn't obtain a motion to accept the minutes as presented I would motion made seconded all in favor aye therefore the minutes of the August
1:479th 2022 and November 3rd 2022 meetings have been accepted moving to item number three proposed leak abatements Mr Clark uh soon for you you have a number of uh League abatements that the staff has evaluated um there is two eight uh approvals as recommended and there are two denials I want to over them um and I I commented to um to you earlier toilets we cannot emphasize strongly enough how important it is
2:34fix toilet leaks before they become very large expensive bills um I've reviewed the um the adjustments and um the histories of the all of the accounts and I would um state that I find no problems whatsoever with the um the uh appeals that have been approved and the two denials so with no further Ado I wanted to make a motion to uh to accept the to accept the payments oh okay I'll second that and um
3:19second the motion um in favor aye therefore proposed leak abatements for 66 boutwell Street 380 Archer Street 3375 North Main 620 dwelling Street 71 through 267 Cherry Street 28 canonicus and 45 North Court Street are approved item number four water department pay rate increases as proposed with the CBA yeah so in relation to item number four in item number five uh we have not been able to
3:57uh come to an agreement with the Union okay uh that's in relation to uh uh pay rate increases as well as as well as the water rate increase that is needed to support those increases I was hoping to be able to have something for the committee uh but I do know so we don't need to take any action on items four or five and then we'll just pass along
4:21um to item number six which is phase 22 lead service replacement loan order in the amount of four million 675 thousand dollars yes so as the board knows from the last meeting the acop that was uh that was approved um uh has a requirement for a number of lead services to be removed over the next four years uh the hope and ambition is to get the city lead free uh within
4:52the within a period of time here as quickly as possible this loan order is one of the first steps as I laid out the first four years of the acop has a uh roughly about a 17 million dollar spending plan with a portion of that coming from coming from Grants as well as this loan order phase 22 alleged service replacement owner the loan order is in the amount of four million 675
5:28000 this will allow us to get right into the engineering the design of a Construction contract of lead service removal for next year the one thing with this loan audit is uh you know I know it's a loan order so essentially we're borrowing money but this is the only way to be able to access bipartisan infrastructure law function so the bill funding all the bill funding for lead service removal
5:57and CSO removal is being provided to communities through the srf program the state revolving fund program is being provided as a principal reduction to a loan that you need to take so essentially we need to go we need to be able to take the loan we've already applied for the srf funding last August in relation to this loan order I expect that we will be we will be on the funding list and uh the srf funding
6:28would be available for us as I did the whole entire spending plan I've assumed that the srf loan would be a 30 reduction I've heard numbers uh higher than that higher but I want it to be conservative so that would leave us um you know so this is a 4.675 million dollar loan order by the time that we've done we will be have a loan uh probably in the three million dollar range Roofing I guess of
7:06the loan that will actually be borrowing so yeah so so what that relates to overall with all the grant funding that we've already got and uh some future funding that we're going to be receiving with the bipartisan infrastructure law again uh only estimated as a 30 reduction of this loan which I will hope I hope that it will be higher in use of some Bristol County Opera funds um you know so we'd be talking a total
7:38of 18.5 million dollars with a loan of probably the three million dollar range that is just unbelievable that is fantastic yeah you know it's a job well done thank you wow I mean when you stop and think about that you just you just said we're getting almost 18 million dollars for three it it great use of Grants great use of of resources fantastic yeah for you know we're lucky
8:18it's it right now is a good time for uh for the grants and the different types of funding especially in relation to lead service again this loan order also allows us to access that bipartisan infrastructure law funding that is that we easily could have been on the hook for the whole thing because the as we have set out ad nauseam here the the federal government is dead serious about getting this let
8:48out the state is dead serious about it through the efforts of the department and seeking out grants we're going to be able to do 18 million dollars worth of work that we have to complete there's no choice here correct and we're only going to pay three million dollars that's a deal made in heaven excellent job thank you so much Paul for your efforts on this thank you so without any further reducer I would
9:18love to entertain a motion to approve the loan order in the amount of four million 675 thousand dollars for lead service replacement I will make a motion I will second that um yeah unanimous unanimously approve all in favor aye oh man that's great item number seven Woodward and current proposal or lead pipe inventory um public engagement Grant yep so this is uh a grant that we received from uh
9:58PA region one one of the grants that is contributing another Grant well done it's contributing to that over 18 million dollars uh going towards lead service removal but this is a contract with wouldn't what we're incurring um to move the elf life as it's called lead pipe inventory and public engagement Grant forward this grant what it's going to do is allow us to be able to do a lead service
10:24inventory tool as well as public education everything that we were awarded this grant for is required through the revised lead and copper rule yes uh which takes effect October 16 2024 so this is going to put us well ahead of the game and not cost time rate pays anything to do that this is going to be a heck of a tool for the Department going forward not only is it going to help you with lead service
10:53abatement and identification first and then replacement but uh we're going to have for the first time on an electronic medium with all of our service information on it so then we can tie our meters and our billing it the whole the whole uh this is great and a grant again this is not costing the rate payers anything we're getting this because of the efforts to secure these grants they don't just fall down from heaven
11:28you've got to go after them it takes diligence for the staff chasing these things writing the proposals we don't have a grant writer in-house so this is done in-house well done excellent job yeah so we do we do use the services of the city's Grant right in the administration so I just want to well a huge they're a huge asset but a lot of this effort it has to be originated here the the amount of
12:01documentation that has to be gathered all of that yeah I appreciate greatly the the services of the city's Grant Rider and without them we wouldn't be where we are but our staff has done a hell of a job on this so we have a total of a proposal for the lead pipe inventory and public engagement Grant of one hundred thousand dollars the chair would entertain a motion to approve and move forward and seconded all in favor
12:37aye updates on ongoing projects who's so close to uh the last meeting that there wasn't any major updates okay so it is preparing anything projects are ongoing water main replacement was completed on Atlantic Boulevard they're finishing tying over Services they did a heck of a heck of a job over on BET on Brighton Avenue I just sorry to interrupt I just when you were thinking about ongoing I
13:09yeah that that issue on Brighton Avenue with a patch the patch that was done was uh was was a good job you know that was a uh that was a very interesting circumstance that we had out there at least with the contaminants in the ground in the emergency Contracting that we had to get a bypass contractor on site to hook people up for that night um you know we were in full contact with
13:35dep through the whole entire process but everything went through uh and eventually we were able to properly scour that main test it and be able to put it back in service so about 20 22 homes had to go on bypass on that one yeah yeah hello excellent yeah that was uh two to uh subsurface contamination that was uncomfortable and we don't know because I mean you're walking tough Henry um
14:06therefore item eight passes by item number nine other potential matters is there anything other come before the board hearing none I've been I'd second that motion all in favor aye thank you