by Neil Richard
The Service Authority began their meeting promptly at 6:30pm.
There were no amendments to the Agenda.
There was no Public Comment.
Christopher Werle began his Board Report by saying he met with Mike Bennett and Jonathon Weakley, General Manager, to discuss the Wiley-Wilson Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) for the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP). On the same day, October 4th, he also attended the fundraiser dinner for the Gladys and Ira West Scholarship. On the 7th, Werle reviewed three years of power outage data from Dominion Energy in an effort to complete the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) grant application. He said he would go into more detail later in the evening. On the 8th he attended the joint session between the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors. Werle also gave an update on the Fairview Beach riverbank stabilization project and said that FEMA has sent a memo to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) regarding their conclusion that the project would not impact the short nosed sturgeon.
Richard Granger had no report.
Cathy Binder said that she met with Weakley and the base in Dahlgren to discuss purchasing supplies jointly in an effort to save money.
Ruby Brabo said that on the 3rd she attended a local government advisory committee meeting and would report on it later in the evening.
Mike Bennett said that, as Werle previously stated, he met with Werle and Weakley to discuss the pump stations on the 4th. Bennett said the plan was to meet with Wiley Wilson early next week and then they would eventually present a final report to the full Board. Bennett said the question of easements was one that needed to be resolved. On the 8th, Bennett said he also attended the joint meeting and thanked the Supervisors for having a midnight deadline.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
The next item on the Agenda was a return to Werle for an update on the FEMA PDM grant. Before he began, Bennett said that while many meetings have had long reports lately, he felt the updates given tonight were important to hear and would help drive discussions.
Werle then gave his update by explaining in detail the math behind the application. He said that in order for an application to be submitted, there needs to be a cost benefit ratio computed of one (1) or more. He said, to break the bad news up front, none of the pump stations in question met that minimum ratio. Werle then went on to explain how he determined the ratio. Based on a plethora of variables, including the number and duration of power outages, the number of impacted customers, the cost for new generators, and more, he was able to calculate out that the worst of the pump stations only had a cost benefit ratio of 0.06. Well below the minimum required amount of one to even submit an application. Werle said he did the same calculations for the other pump stations and the numbers were even lower. He said that without a lot of power outages or more impacted customers, the math just doesn't work out.
Ruby Brabo thanked Werle for his research and asked if the purchase of generators was required by the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Bennett said it was one option. Other options included portable generators or holding tanks and that they would need to talk to Wiley Wilson more when they return. Brabo said that either way there is an expense that's required because they need to provide a backup. Bennett confirmed that. Weakley said that the cost of generators used in Werle's math was a little high but it didn't sound like it would have changed the math much. Werle said that given the power outage history, DEQ may be more receptive to moving the requirement for backup generators down the road a few years. Brabo asked about the data only going back three years and asked if Werle could get more information than that. Werle said he could certainly ask. Weakley said that based on the in-house data available for the past two years, there's only been a few hours of outages and it backs up the data given from Dominion. Granger asked if more years of outages could be used for the math and Werle said if more data can be found he can certainly try to use it.
Bennett said that he feels a generator is the best solution as a holding tank would require pumping every day and that would place an additional work load on employees. He said that Chief Lynd of the Fire and Rescue Department has gotten generators through grants before so it's something to continue to look at. Werle said FEMA has a pot of money every year for PDM grants and he now has the software to run the calculations. This means they can do the math up front to see if a project qualifies. Bennett said that leads to the PER for the pump stations and the question of easements. He said it looks problematic going forward but they'll do what they have to.
Weakley said he wanted to repeat that Wiley Wilson will be returning next week and that although reviewing technical documents may be like watching paint dry he would like comments from each Board member regarding their report. He said there will be challenges, especially related to easements, but was still tracking towards the December deadline. That meant comments needed to be submitted before the November meeting so it could be discussed then.
Werle interjected quickly to say he reviewed his email to Dominion regarding the power outage data and he asked for all available data and Dominion only provided three years.
Weakley then gave an update on the PER for Purkins Corner WWTP. He said it was just an update as he needs time to receive them and vet them before going forward. He requested a PER from Draper Aden, Wiley Wilson, and Dewberry and Draper Aden declined because they felt Wiley Wilson would be better suited. Weakley said he would pass along the information to the Board and ask them to comment individually. He also said he would take advantage of Travis Quesenberry to see if anything raised flags as he was a knowledgeable engineer.
Ruby Brabo then gave an update on the Water Quality Improvement Fund (WQIF) grant. She said that as part of their discussion at the local government advisory committee for the Chesapeake Bay, specifically regarding the new Water Improvement Plan (WIP) III, the group had previously been split three to three. She said that after she discussed things and shared the Service Authority story, the group was six in favor of speaking against the WIP III. Brabo also said that Ann Jennings, Deputy Secretary of Natural Resources for the Chesapeake Bay, and Matthew Strickler, Secretary of Natural Resources, said there may be options to forgive or pay some of the Service Authority debt since the state mandated they take over private systems in 1991 without any financial aid.
Granger said that would be great news but wanted to know, if that did pan out, if there was an existing program out there to make it happen or was it an ad hoc situation. Brabo said there was no direct mention but she was under the impression that there were programs out there for debt relief. Binder asked if the loans were held by private banks or the state and if it was a private bank, how that would work. Brabo said that was answered at the meeting and that the debt wasn't something that could be forgiven but it was more like a loan program that the Service Authority wouldn't have to pay back. Bennett said most of the debt is with the Virginia Resources Authority (VRA) which he assumed was a state agency. Gregory said it was. Bennett said that it would be great to meet with Secretary Jennings and they could wine and dine her. Brabo said "no no no" and Bennett said it was just a figure of speech. He said they could tour the Purkins Corner WWTP and was happy to work with her as much as possible.
Weakley then gave a short General Manager's report. He said that normally he gives nutrient measurement info for all of the WWTPs but the data wasn't given to him with enough time to share so he would do so at the next meeting. Weakley said he received the inspection report from Warren Veazey regarding the water tank and after a quick glance he noticed no glaring issues. He said that if the Service Authority were to use the tank, more steps in the process would need to be completed before an agreement could be signed.
When Weakley mentioned the Dahlgren water permit was up for renewal, Brabo asked if they could use less strict numbers for Total Nitrogen (TN) and Total Phosphorus (TP). Weakley said that was unlikely because grant money was used to purchase equipment to reduce the TN and TP. He said that was a good question though and that other questions should be asked during the renewal process.
Weakley then shared that he promoted three employees. Roger Young and Tim Maceijewski were promoted to Wastewater Lead Operators and Dean Hoagland was promoted to Superintendent of Operations. Weakley said that all three have worked hard and deserved to be rewarded for their success. He said that Young found a unique solution to the issues faced by the Dahlgren WWTP, Maceijewski has worked hard to bring Oakland Park WWTP into compliance, and that Hoagland has been reliable help. Weakley went on to say that Hoagland didn't just put paper in the copier but would also talk to developers and engineers, work to address pump issues, and most of all has demonstrated great customer service skills.
Bennett congratulated the three employees, two of which were in the audience, and said he has gotten to know them during the dark days last summer. Bennett said he was glad they stuck around and thanked them for their service. He then got a laugh when he said, for the record, he would not be wining and dining any of them.
The meeting adjourned at 7:12pm.
Meeting Attendees:
Christopher Werle (Board of Directors)
Jonathon Weakley (General Manager of Service Authority)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Michael Bennett (Chairman, Citizen)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Service Authority will next meet on November 19, 2019 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Service Authority Meeting.
The Service Authority began their meeting promptly at 6:30pm.
There were no amendments to the Agenda.
There was no Public Comment.
Christopher Werle began his Board Report by saying he met with Mike Bennett and Jonathon Weakley, General Manager, to discuss the Wiley-Wilson Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) for the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP). On the same day, October 4th, he also attended the fundraiser dinner for the Gladys and Ira West Scholarship. On the 7th, Werle reviewed three years of power outage data from Dominion Energy in an effort to complete the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) grant application. He said he would go into more detail later in the evening. On the 8th he attended the joint session between the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors. Werle also gave an update on the Fairview Beach riverbank stabilization project and said that FEMA has sent a memo to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) regarding their conclusion that the project would not impact the short nosed sturgeon.
Richard Granger had no report.
Cathy Binder said that she met with Weakley and the base in Dahlgren to discuss purchasing supplies jointly in an effort to save money.
Ruby Brabo said that on the 3rd she attended a local government advisory committee meeting and would report on it later in the evening.
Mike Bennett said that, as Werle previously stated, he met with Werle and Weakley to discuss the pump stations on the 4th. Bennett said the plan was to meet with Wiley Wilson early next week and then they would eventually present a final report to the full Board. Bennett said the question of easements was one that needed to be resolved. On the 8th, Bennett said he also attended the joint meeting and thanked the Supervisors for having a midnight deadline.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
The next item on the Agenda was a return to Werle for an update on the FEMA PDM grant. Before he began, Bennett said that while many meetings have had long reports lately, he felt the updates given tonight were important to hear and would help drive discussions.
Werle then gave his update by explaining in detail the math behind the application. He said that in order for an application to be submitted, there needs to be a cost benefit ratio computed of one (1) or more. He said, to break the bad news up front, none of the pump stations in question met that minimum ratio. Werle then went on to explain how he determined the ratio. Based on a plethora of variables, including the number and duration of power outages, the number of impacted customers, the cost for new generators, and more, he was able to calculate out that the worst of the pump stations only had a cost benefit ratio of 0.06. Well below the minimum required amount of one to even submit an application. Werle said he did the same calculations for the other pump stations and the numbers were even lower. He said that without a lot of power outages or more impacted customers, the math just doesn't work out.
Ruby Brabo thanked Werle for his research and asked if the purchase of generators was required by the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Bennett said it was one option. Other options included portable generators or holding tanks and that they would need to talk to Wiley Wilson more when they return. Brabo said that either way there is an expense that's required because they need to provide a backup. Bennett confirmed that. Weakley said that the cost of generators used in Werle's math was a little high but it didn't sound like it would have changed the math much. Werle said that given the power outage history, DEQ may be more receptive to moving the requirement for backup generators down the road a few years. Brabo asked about the data only going back three years and asked if Werle could get more information than that. Werle said he could certainly ask. Weakley said that based on the in-house data available for the past two years, there's only been a few hours of outages and it backs up the data given from Dominion. Granger asked if more years of outages could be used for the math and Werle said if more data can be found he can certainly try to use it.
Bennett said that he feels a generator is the best solution as a holding tank would require pumping every day and that would place an additional work load on employees. He said that Chief Lynd of the Fire and Rescue Department has gotten generators through grants before so it's something to continue to look at. Werle said FEMA has a pot of money every year for PDM grants and he now has the software to run the calculations. This means they can do the math up front to see if a project qualifies. Bennett said that leads to the PER for the pump stations and the question of easements. He said it looks problematic going forward but they'll do what they have to.
Weakley said he wanted to repeat that Wiley Wilson will be returning next week and that although reviewing technical documents may be like watching paint dry he would like comments from each Board member regarding their report. He said there will be challenges, especially related to easements, but was still tracking towards the December deadline. That meant comments needed to be submitted before the November meeting so it could be discussed then.
Werle interjected quickly to say he reviewed his email to Dominion regarding the power outage data and he asked for all available data and Dominion only provided three years.
Weakley then gave an update on the PER for Purkins Corner WWTP. He said it was just an update as he needs time to receive them and vet them before going forward. He requested a PER from Draper Aden, Wiley Wilson, and Dewberry and Draper Aden declined because they felt Wiley Wilson would be better suited. Weakley said he would pass along the information to the Board and ask them to comment individually. He also said he would take advantage of Travis Quesenberry to see if anything raised flags as he was a knowledgeable engineer.
Ruby Brabo then gave an update on the Water Quality Improvement Fund (WQIF) grant. She said that as part of their discussion at the local government advisory committee for the Chesapeake Bay, specifically regarding the new Water Improvement Plan (WIP) III, the group had previously been split three to three. She said that after she discussed things and shared the Service Authority story, the group was six in favor of speaking against the WIP III. Brabo also said that Ann Jennings, Deputy Secretary of Natural Resources for the Chesapeake Bay, and Matthew Strickler, Secretary of Natural Resources, said there may be options to forgive or pay some of the Service Authority debt since the state mandated they take over private systems in 1991 without any financial aid.
Granger said that would be great news but wanted to know, if that did pan out, if there was an existing program out there to make it happen or was it an ad hoc situation. Brabo said there was no direct mention but she was under the impression that there were programs out there for debt relief. Binder asked if the loans were held by private banks or the state and if it was a private bank, how that would work. Brabo said that was answered at the meeting and that the debt wasn't something that could be forgiven but it was more like a loan program that the Service Authority wouldn't have to pay back. Bennett said most of the debt is with the Virginia Resources Authority (VRA) which he assumed was a state agency. Gregory said it was. Bennett said that it would be great to meet with Secretary Jennings and they could wine and dine her. Brabo said "no no no" and Bennett said it was just a figure of speech. He said they could tour the Purkins Corner WWTP and was happy to work with her as much as possible.
Weakley then gave a short General Manager's report. He said that normally he gives nutrient measurement info for all of the WWTPs but the data wasn't given to him with enough time to share so he would do so at the next meeting. Weakley said he received the inspection report from Warren Veazey regarding the water tank and after a quick glance he noticed no glaring issues. He said that if the Service Authority were to use the tank, more steps in the process would need to be completed before an agreement could be signed.
When Weakley mentioned the Dahlgren water permit was up for renewal, Brabo asked if they could use less strict numbers for Total Nitrogen (TN) and Total Phosphorus (TP). Weakley said that was unlikely because grant money was used to purchase equipment to reduce the TN and TP. He said that was a good question though and that other questions should be asked during the renewal process.
Weakley then shared that he promoted three employees. Roger Young and Tim Maceijewski were promoted to Wastewater Lead Operators and Dean Hoagland was promoted to Superintendent of Operations. Weakley said that all three have worked hard and deserved to be rewarded for their success. He said that Young found a unique solution to the issues faced by the Dahlgren WWTP, Maceijewski has worked hard to bring Oakland Park WWTP into compliance, and that Hoagland has been reliable help. Weakley went on to say that Hoagland didn't just put paper in the copier but would also talk to developers and engineers, work to address pump issues, and most of all has demonstrated great customer service skills.
Bennett congratulated the three employees, two of which were in the audience, and said he has gotten to know them during the dark days last summer. Bennett said he was glad they stuck around and thanked them for their service. He then got a laugh when he said, for the record, he would not be wining and dining any of them.
The meeting adjourned at 7:12pm.
Meeting Attendees:
Christopher Werle (Board of Directors)
Jonathon Weakley (General Manager of Service Authority)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Michael Bennett (Chairman, Citizen)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Service Authority will next meet on November 19, 2019 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Service Authority Meeting.
SUBSCRIBE OR DONATE
You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
No comments:
Post a Comment