TALLADEGA — Members of the City Council and the Water and Sewer Board met Tuesday morning at the board offices to discuss a variety of mutual concerns.Also present at the meeting were Mayor Brian York, city manager Thomas Christie, city clerk Sue Horn, board general manager Bill Goheen, board assistant managers James Brasher and Cathy Fuller, and maintenance supervisor Jeff Johnson.
Board member Dan Waites was absent from the meeting, as was City Councilman Eddie Tucker.
Recently elected council president Dr. Horace Patterson set the tone for the meeting almost immediately, raising the recurring concern about lack of sewer service in the Bellview and Simmons Circle communities, both of which are in his ward.
"This has been an issue for the last 20 years," Patterson said. "We've had meeting after meeting after meeting, and nothing ever gets done."
Goheen pointed out that engineer Gary Huffman of Krebs and Associates would be there later in the afternoon. "We can discuss that project with him, but sewer service projects are very expensive. I don't know why nothing has been done on this in the past, though."
"What I want to know," Patterson said, "is where are we with this right now?"
"Ground zero," Goheen replied.
As Patterson went on to state, grant applications in the past have failed due to income parameters. Brasher pointed out other problems as well.
"It's a very low area, so you're going to need one or two pumping stations," he explained. "(Former superintendent) Robert O'Neal went door to door one time, but the costs without a grant are astronomical. You're talking about $7,000 to $8,000 per person."
Huffman later pointed out other problems, including the fact that much of the ground in that area is almost solid rock. This presents an additional problem, since septic tanks in the area often malfunction since the ground does not perk.
At approximately 35 homes in the area, Councilman William Clark estimated the minimum assessment would be $245,000.
"This is a source of community anger and resentment," Patterson said. "People see you paying your attorneys thousands and thousands of dollars while they go without. I'm told your lawyers have gotten $300,000. It sounds to me like that money could have gone to these communities. I think they got mine."
In fact, the board has paid attorneys fees in the amount of $280,000 since 2002. Some $260,000 of that amount has gone to the Montgomery based law firm of Sasser, Littleton and Stidham, according to board records.
Goheen produced a map detailing the areas where sewer service is not available in the city. While available in most parts of the heart of town, nearly all of the homes in the outer portions of the city are without service.
Christie asked the board several general questions concerning revenue and long-range planning.
"How much are you spending on long-range planning per year?" Christie asked.
Board chairman Wayne Kearley responded, "That has not been a prevailing concern in the last few years."
"Most systems," Christie said, "routinely extend and repair water and sewer lines each year."
"Right now," Goheen said, "we're concentrating on older, galvanized lines, but we don't have a replacement program or planned scheduling. We've been putting out fires, but we'll get to that."
Christie then inquired into the board's annual revenue. Kearley said the board is looking at about a $300,000 yearly profit/loss ratio.
Goheen said he believed year-to-date revenue was about $1.6 million, and overall revenue last year was about $3 million.
"What kind of debt service are you looking at?" Christie asked. "If you're carrying heavy debt service, that would explain why you haven't done anything with infrastructure improvements."
Goheen and Kearley were unable to give a ballpark figure for debt service, and Fuller said she was not sure what it would be when the recently floated bond issue was factored in.
Clark asked if infrastructure projects were included in the new bond issue. Goheen said the board was currently focusing bond projects on waste water issues in Brecon and Knoxville.
"We are trying to recruit new business and industry," Patterson said, "and we need to know the answers to these questions. You have to be able to tell a prospect what we have to offer."
Christie agreed, pointing out particularly the large "green areas" on the map with no sewer service. "There will be no economic development in those green areas, and you can cut your potential housing there in half," he said. "The city is trying to plan and finance growth, but in these areas it's a lost cause.
"I don't know what past obstacles you've faced," Christie said, "but I've never seen a map like that with such large gaps in sewer collection in the city limits. It's obvious that not a lot has been done on a yearly basis for several years now. And I don't know what your rate structure is relative to other communities in the area."
Kearley said the board last raised rates in 1998, much to Christie’s surprise. "Most boards do a small rate adjustments every year, based on inflation, the cost-of-living index, the consumer price index, whatever. You're looking at addressing today's issues with revenues from six years ago. Why haven't you done anything?"
Patterson said he could understand this. "Given all the negatives, these board members would get their heads taken off if they did a rate increase. People would point out they didn't spend their money the right way. If it was lost, if there were managerial problems, whatever, it creates distrust. Plus the fact that there is no plan, and no utilization of existing resources."
Kearley said these problems were "not planned. Rates are always a concern, more with the council than the board. It seems whenever they come up, it's always near an election or something."
"We don't set water rates," Clark observed.
Kearley said he was merely referring to "influence of previous councils."
"If we have sound figures," Goheen said, "we can justify these expenditures. The people in this room didn't make these problems. They follow behind the people that did."
Goheen suggested that one way the board could generate additional revenue, if not good will, would be the enforcement of a provision of the board's charter, which requires residents within 100 feet of a sewer line to tap on.
"The city has assessment power, but the board doesn't," Kearley said. "In 1965, the city assessed everyone in the basin for sewer service. We need to go from there. It will take money to make these plans. But without money, there is no point in planning to get anything done."
Also Tuesday, the board and council discussed:
•Deeding Brecon Springs Park to the county. An agreement had been reached but, according to Clark, the county backed off when the board decided to ask them to maintain two roads inside the park. Goheen said he would talk with county administrator Jim Hilber about this issue.
•Lack of fire hydrants on at least half a dozen streets, and inadequate pressure on several others. Christie also pointed out that several hydrants are so old city firefighters have to carry special attachments to attach hoses to them. The board also has no systematic hydrant replacement program. This is a major problem for the council, which has made lowering the city's ISO rating a major priority.
•Discussed a cooperative approach to detailed computer mapping.
•Heard an update on the Precision Strip sewer project, which Goheen said was "60 to 70 percent complete."
•Discussed city policy regarding street cuts. Christie pointed out that the number of cuts required was symptomatic of the lack of infrastructure replacement. Fuller reported that the board had filed a $50,000 bond with the city for street repairs, which Horn pointed out had not been signed by anyone. Kearley signed the paperwork Tuesday afternoon.
•Heard Goheen discuss several programs to improve public relations, including the board's recently launched Web site, www.talladegawsb.com.
•Heard Goheen say the Grant Street well aeration tower would probably be ready for testing in September.
•Discussed, with Huffman, plans for a new water line to the Honda plant in Lincoln, a storage tank near the Talladega Superspeedway, and tapping into the county water system.
