The Town of Ridgefield is mandated by the State of CT DEEP according to our State permit to upgrade the wastewater treatment plants.
Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA) wants Town residents to be fully informed regarding the Wastewater Facilities Upgrade Project which you will see on the ballot on Election Day: “WPCA Referendum Question #12”.
About the Upgrade
The upgrade of both its District 1 and 2 wastewater treatment facilities. These facilities, which serve the downtown area of Ridgefield (District 1) and a portion of Route 7 (District 2) serve areas that provide the Town with many beneficial services. The project to improve the treatment facilities is being driven by the need to meet newly imposed limits for the removal of phosphorous from the wastewater and to replace old, outdated, and inefficient equipment. It is important to recognize that the upgrade of these treatment facilities is not an option - they are governed by permits and regulations which require the treatment system to be upgraded, not to mention that the facilities themselves have reached or exceeded their service life after operating 24/7 for over 25 years.
Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s (DEEP) Clean Water Fund
The Town has applied for and has won a place on the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s (DEEP) Clean Water Fund fundable list for this estimated $48 million project. DEEP establishes a new list every two years and the current list which Ridgefield is on is scheduled to expire on June 30, 2019. By being on the list, the Town is eligible to receive an estimated $11.5 million dollars in grants to help offset the cost of the project. In addition to the grants, the DEEP’s program includes a loan provision for the remaining cost of the project ($36.5 million) which can be repaid over a 20 year period at an interest rate of 2 percent.
Paying for the project
According to the WPCA, the approach to repayment of the $36.5 million loan that has been presented to the community calls for payments to be made from 2 groups – the community at large and the users of the system.
It is common for towns facing such upgrades to share the costs across the entire town, recognizing that everyone benefits by having these plants in place. In this case, as was done when the Town last upgraded its facilities in the early 1990s, the Town is proposing to repay $8 million of the loan through general taxation. This means that a taxpayer whose current tax bill is $13,000 per year would experience an increase in their tax bill of an estimated $48 per year. The initial tax assessment would not be levied until 2023 when the first payment of the loan is projected to be due. Sewer system users, a mix of businesses and residents, will be bearing the balance of the loan of $28.5M.
Payment for this portion of the loan will be made through the Town’s Sewer User Charge System. The Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA) is working with a sewer rate consultant to finalize a model to project future sewer user charges. Forecasts call for a bump in rates next year followed by very moderate increases for the next several years to provide funds for this project. The annual cost for a sewer unit is projected to increase from its current value of $470 to $914 over a 10 year period. More information on the proposed rate structure can be found on the WPCA’s website (https://www.ridgefieldct.org/water-pollution-control-authority-wpca). Sharing the costs between these 2 groups seems a fair and reasonable approach to financing this necessary project.
The Vote
WPCA Referendum Question #12
Shall the $48,000,000 appropriation and bond authorization (less any grants expected to be received from the State of Connecticut Clean Water Fund) for the planning, design and construction of the South Street sewer treatment plant and pump station upgrades be approved?
Background
The Town of Ridgefield provides municipal wastewater collection and treatment services to three areas of town. Within the town government, the Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA) is responsible for the management and operation of the town’s wastewater facilities. As part of the WPCA operations, planning for the capital needs of the towns wastewater facilities has been underway for several years and upgrades are now being proposed with a funding approval referendum vote scheduled on November 6, 2018.
Want to know more before you vote? Click here.
WPCA would also like residents to be aware of the following documents which may be of help in understanding the project.
1. Public Meeting PowerPoint Presentation with text and graphics - Click here.
2. October 17, 2018 letter from DEEP – Outcomes of a “Yes” or “No” vote – Click here.
3. Cost Breakdown of the Upgrade Project – Click here.
4. Financial Model/Rate Schedule of the Upgrade Project – Click here.
What does the Town's WPCA do?
The WPCA is responsible for the management and oversight of the Town's 2 Wastewater Treatment Facilities (WWTFs): the South Street WWTF serving Sewer District 1, the Route 7 WWTF serving Sewer District 2, and the sewer system in District 3. These facilities are aging and are reaching the end of their planned service lives, and the WPCA has recently completed a Wastewater Facilities Plan needs estimated costs for upgrades to the 2 WWTFs as well as the wastewater collection systems.