George Murray opened the meeting by explaining what the Prudential Committee has
done to date, the hiring of Forcier and Aldrich for an Engineering Study and indicated
there would be an income survey sent to all residents as part of the overall study to
determine possible levels of grants and low interest loans for the District. The household
income of the Town as a whole is high and the Committee believes the income level of
the Fire District would be lower resulting in the availability of grants.
The present Engineering Study is at a 60% completion level. The purpose of this
information meeting is to present preliminary information and gather feedback
concerning the various options under investigation for water in the District. George
introduced Joe Duncan.

Study Presentation
Joe Duncan of Forcier and Aldrich presented four alternatives to a change in the water
supply method to Ascutney Fire District #2 (see attached). He first explained the
process of the study and gave a brief history of the water system and how we got to this
point.

Option One (6” water lines and hydro-pneumatic system) - includes the present
infrastructure arrangement with upgrades of piping and system components and no fire
hydrants (fire flow) built into the system.

Options Two and Three (12” water lines with Hydrants and storage tank) – these two
options continue to use the present well system but add a large storage tank and water
lines that are sized to provide fire protection within the District. The storage tank needs
to be located at a topographic elevation of approx. 600 feet to provide sufficient water
pressure using a gravity distribution system. Option Two has a storage tank located in
the Thrasher Road area where a 600-foot elevation exists on the west side of I-91.
Option Three is the same infrastructure with a storage tank located in the area of Exit 8
and 131 where there is a 600-foot elevation for the storage tank needs.
Option Four (same as above option 2&3 but a water connection with Windsor) – this
option continues to use a storage tank with pipe sized for fire protection but eliminates
the use of the present wells and uses a pipe connection with the Town of Windsor water
line located in the Cedar Hills Nursing Home area. This option would eliminate the
wellhead protection zone presently in place around the wells. The zone protects land
upstream water wells and can prohibit development and septic tank restrictions for
replacements or new systems.

Potential Funding Sources – there are various funding sources for this project that
includes the normal State of Vermont Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Fund, USDA
Rural Development Grant and Loan Program, and a Federal Earmark. We cannot take
advantage of combinations of the above. Grants are based on local household income
and an income survey will be done as explained above, to establish the level of grants
available to the District.

Opened up for Questions
In the option of new pipes, what happens to the old pipes?
They are left as they are in the ground. New mains would go in town right of
ways.

Are you looking at HDPE pipes? (High Density Polyethylene)
Yes. or PVC(Polyvinylchloride) pipes.

How long could the current system last as is?
Some sections are better than others and some sections are nearly failing now.
New steel or plastic pipes have a 50-year life expectancy.

Income Survey
George Murray explained the income survey process with a letter being sent out to the
District residents explaining the process followed by a letter from USDA employee Tom
Clark who does this as part of his job. Surveys are confidential and not seen by the Fire
District, only USDA.
For property owners who reside outside of the Fire District and therefore, canʼt vote on
this issue, whose income will be recorded on such properties?
Mailed surveys will go to the residents. For example, renters/tenants would
complete the income survey information.
John Arrison offered the information that the Town of Weathersfield is considered
wealthy, but an income survey may prove that the Village of Ascutney is not and
therefore, is eligible for grants and residents may want to vote for water supply
improvements.

Which of the four options does the committee prefer?

George Murray, committee chair, replied that the committee members were
presented with these Options at the previous Prudential Committee Meeting a couple of
weeks ago and have not had a meeting to discuss the pro and con of each Option. He
did comment that if the Windsor Town water supply could be used it would free up the
wellhead protection area for development but that would come at a greater cost.
John Arrison noted that there once was a question of connection to the Claremont, NH
water supply. George said that he would check into it again and also said he had asked
the question about two years ago and Claremont was not interested.
What about cutting across properties and right of ways?
Right of way can be purchased or property owner can donate land. Excluding
tanks, the goal is to be on municipal right of ways. Tank sites require easements with
the property owner(s).
Joe Duncan indicated that a line up Route 5, continuing the Windsor water line through
Thrasher Road to the 600ʼ elevation required would be an ideal scenario. Joe asked
what is the value of water? Currently, the Ascutney users are paying about $200 a
year. State and USDA funding is based on percentage of the median household
income. The Vermont State median cost for water service is approximately $400-500 a
year.
Joe also addressed options about collecting fees. One option could be only users
would pay maintenance and use costs. Bond repayment would be similar to a tax either
in a flat fee to each property or on taxed assessed value. However, the Prudential
Committee will address this when they prepare the By-Laws if a system is constructed
and the District Residents will review and approve By-Laws.

Would a connection to Windsor Town lines mean payment to them?
The Fire District intends to own and would operate the system, paying Windsor
for water only. There would be a fee for the water from Windsor and long-term
contracts are typically negotiated that have annual escalators included. The District has
the option of hiring a water system operator or contracting with Windsor or other
operator to maintain and operate the District system
The options listed as #2,3,4 have fire protection included and there would be fire
hydrants installed. This could result in some decrease of individual fire insurance costs,
however it cannot be determined until a system is in place and the insurance companies
review the system.

How would the pipes go over the interstate?
A pipeline would go across the bridge with an insulated pipe hanging under the
bridge structure.

How old is the Weston Heights to Cedar Hill water line? Is there a decline from Weston
Heights to Cedar Hill?

The line to Cedar Hills was installed about ten years ago and is an 8-inch water
line. A connection to that pipe would require a booster pump station to provide pressure
to fill the storage tank in the District

Would you adapt for future growth?
Yes. The tank is sized for 20 years into the future.
Does the public service board determine the rate of water from Windsor?
No, these are local agreements defining reasonable rates.
Would there be recourse if Windsor town decided to raise the rate?
Probably the rate would be determined by proportional flow according to Jim
Mullen, Town Manager. There are many shared operations in the state with working
agreements.

Has there been discussion about if the existing wells have to be disconnected?
If a homeowner had an existing well and also connected to the water system,
what is called a cross connection occurs where one water source could migrate into the
other and contaminate the system. Cross connections are not allowed in water systems
and wells would have to be shut down for personal in-home use.

Jim Mullen commented that three quarters of yearly costs in any system is put toward
paying the bond.

Next steps:
The Prudential Committee will look at income survey results, potential funding sources,
debt service on users only or on all Ascutney residents within the Fire district, plus fine
tuning of the four options. Then another public information session will be held.

Gloria Murray, Clerk of Prudential Committee