M I N U T E S
SEWER COMMISSION
OCTOBER 17, 2016
The regular meeting of the Sewer Commission was called to order at 5:45 p.m. by Chairman Moore on Monday, October 17, 2016 in the Conference Room of the Department of Public Works located at 63 Canal Street in Holyoke.
Present were: David Moore, Chairman
Kathleen Anderson, Commissioner
Michael McManus, General Superintendent
Yem Lip, City Engineer
Debra Reardon, Office Manager
#1. Minutes of the previous meeting (10.26.16) were approved and accepted as submitted by
Chairman Moore, seconded by Commissioner Anderson. 2-0
#2. TABLED
(a) Master Plan – Nothing to report at this time.
This item will remain Tabled.
(b) Collections of Past Due Sewer – Needed approval and signatures on monthly auditor’s report.
Motion to approve and sign made by Chairman Moore, seconded by Commissioner Anderson. 2-0
Collections have been great.
We sent out a batch of 688 delinquent letters on September 30th. Delinquents were due
October 14th. People have been streaming in. Next letter due to go out first week of
November. This letter will warn people they have until the end of the month to pay up
or be placed on tax lien December 1st. This letter normally includes the October billing
which on the bill states the past due date of November 30th. This is the letter that we get
hundreds of complaints on for the people that pay or pay toward the end of the cycle.
Not sure if I want to do that again – people are brutally nasty. The unfortunate part is if
I do not send that letter with those dates than we don’t collect as much money as we
would normally because we do collect a lot of money off that letter. That letter may
have a few dozen of innocent victims but the majority have a lot of arrears. We do not
win either way with the way the office staff is treated. Some of the innocent victims had
suggested maybe some less harsh language in the letter but if the letter is not stearn
enough people do not take it serious and do not respond. I look at it this way, if the
letter doesn’t pertain to me than I do not worry about. How many times do we get mail
or phone calls that state if you have sent in your payment please disregard. Things do
tend to cross in the mail.
This item will remain Tabled.
United Water Service Contract – Nothing to report at this time.
This item will remain Tabled.
(d) Environmental Protection Agency – General Superintendent informed Commission he
went to a meeting with Mr. Fuqua on the NPDES Permit with Sonoco Products. There is
a limit for metals.They are concerned about how it will affect their effluent flow. There
is a person who has been testing local water and it is possibly contaminated with low
levels of copper and lead.
This item will remain Tabled.
NEW BUSINES
#3. Quantum Bio-Power Anaerobic Digestion
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Motion to adjourn at 5:55 p.m.
Respectfully submitted.
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