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ANSONIA – Ansonia’s wastewater system is now owned by Aquarion Water Co., making Ansonia the second city in Connecticut to privatize its sewer system.
The deal closed on Tuesday (Dec. 3) as scheduled, according to a press release from Aquarion.
The $41 million sale was approved by Ansonia’s Board of Aldermen in May and signed off on by Mayor David Cassetti’s administration in June. In addition to the $41 million purchase price, the deal includes a promise from the company to invest at least $15 million into the system over the next five years.
“Aquarion Water Company today announced it has completed the purchase of the City of Ansonia’s municipal wastewater system. The purchase marks the largest privatization of a municipal wastewater system in New England,” the press release says.
In the Board of Aldermen’s final act before the deal closed, it approved a new sewer rate schedule on Nov. 25. The new rates are about 38 percent higher than the old ones – but residents won’t see an increase on their bills for the next year, according to city officials.
As part of the deal, the now-dissolved Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA)’s assets – about $7 million – were put into a “rate stabilization fund.” That fund will be distributed to residents to cushion the blow of rate increase, city officials have said.
Click here for an explanation of the “rate stabilization fund.”
Aquarion’s press release quotes Mayor Cassetti as saying the deal will help the city invest in other parts of its infrastructure.
Some of the sale proceeds will go toward funding items in the city’s capital spending plan. That plan was approved in July and contains about $8.8 million worth of items to be paid for by the sale.
Cassetti also said in April that the deal will fill a $5 million hole in a previous budget.
The deal wasn’t without controversy.
At a public hearing in April, about two dozen city residents said the deal shouldn’t go through. Opponents of the sale included WPCA officials, former elected officials, and a former planning & zoning chairman.
City officials have said the plant is in bad shape and in dire need of expensive repairs, citing a study by the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments that recommended about $15 million in improvements. They said that they would need to drastically increase rates if they didn’t sell the plant.
However, the sewer administrator at the time, Jason St. Jacques, said that the city’s analysis was flawed, and that repairs could be made gradually while keeping rates reasonable.
“The sewer plant is not falling apart,” St. Jacques said at the hearing. “It is not in desperate need of all these repairs.”
Before the WPCA board was disbanded pursuant to the sale, three Aldermen sat on it. Two of those Aldermen – Dan King and Chicago Rivers – were the only Aldermen to vote against the sale in May.
As part of the final sewer rate public hearing on Nov. 25, the Aldermen created a “customer advisory board” to serve as a communication link between city residents and Aquarion. Its members are Brandon Rodriguez, Richard Bshara, and Sean Masi. Up to seven additional members could be appointed in the future.
PHOTO (L to R): John Marini, Corporation Counsel — City of Ansonia; Danielle Morrison, Wastewater Operations Manager — Aquarion Water Company; David Cassetti, Mayor — City of Ansonia; Donald Morrissey, President — Aquarion Water Company; Sheila O’Malley, Economic Development Director — City of Ansonia; Adam Simonsen — Business Development Director — Aquarion Water Company.
