Well owners on Treeland Road, Brownson Drive and Mark Drive have the chance to hook up to city water, but public opposition overflowed at a public hearing Tuesday.
About 60 people poured into the Auditorium to address the Board of Aldermen, with only one there for a separate hearing on proposed revisions to the city’s anti-blight law.
City Engineer Robert F. Kulacz opened the hearing with the price tag of the proposal, about $13,000 to $14,000 to extend the water main to the front lawns of the homes. The city would pay that bill over a number of years, but residents would have to hire and pay a contractor up front to connect to their homes to the main. Fire hydrants would also be built in the area, which is near the Means Brook Reservoir.
He said the proposal is in its second stage, where the residents can vote on the matter by mailed ballot. But most of 30 neighbors cast their verbal votes, many in opposition, during the 2½-hour hearing.
Once the ballot results are known, the Board of Aldermen will decide, based on “a clear majority,” whether to fund the extension, said Board President John F. Anglace Jr.
“This is not the time,” said David Burr of Brownson Drive. He said with depressed home values and a recession, the proposal would burden residents with more debt while cutting into their profits if they sell the homes.
Treeland Road resident Jill Forte agreed. “I’m really concerned about spending that amount in these economic times,” she said, adding, “We’ve already had a history of blasting and it’s collapsed wells.”
Some of the homes in the neighborhood are set far back from the road and the area has a lot of solid rock, added Gail Addenbrooke of Brownson Drive.
“It’s going to be tens of thousands [dollars], depending on the ledge. The cost to hook up would be astronomical,” she said.
Some residents said they had to pay to fix problems caused by blasting from previous projects.
One speaker, Diane Wilson, a real estate attorney who lives on Treeland Road, said she made the extension request because of problems with her well water.
Residents do not have to hook up to the line if it is built, but it was not clear if they could dig new wells should their wells fail after the proposed extension.
While many well users praised their water quality and taste and low water bills, extension supporters urged them to think about the future and the benefits of city water.
Al Minopoli wanted to water his lawn and cut down his electric bill. The well uses a lot of electricity, he said. Well water also contains iron, which damages water fixtures and copper pipes, he added.
“I strongly feel there’s a massive benefit,” Minopoli said.
City water may save money, said Linda Reynolds, whose parents have lived on Treeland Road for 50 years. They recently paid about $10,000 to clean their well’s pipes and fix it.
“That well that’s good now may not be good 20 years from now,” she said.
