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Does Something Smell About The River Road Sewer?

Submitted by SaveArdmoreCoalition on Wed, 2008-02-06 21:28.
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Commissioner Dellheim seemed a tad irritated this evening when dealing with this Public Works Committee on the River Road Sewer topic didn't she? Why was she being in a word, snippy? Sorry to be sour grapes, but we feel these people deserve a greater degree of respect and if they want to ask about costs or talk about costs, then darn it all, they should be allowed to do so....After all, they are going to be paying for this - people of moderate incomes, retirees, and so forth. We're all not millionaires on this bus!

These folks on River Road, many of whom are loyal SAC friends are going to be footing the bill of a very expensive sewer installation, which they are not against per se, but they are questioning things like the cost.

We live in purportedly one of the richest communities in the country, and we feel that this wealthy township should do a little better job of (a) outlining the dollars and cents and (b) finding ways to pay for it so the brunt of cost is not put on the backs of citizenry of modest means.

The River Road folks are not against progress, but they are concerned about open ended costs of this sewer project. These fine people of River Road seem to be one of the communities that gets the short end of the stick far too often.

They should be valued more highly.We value them highly.

They aren't saying "no" to this Lower Merion, but if they were McMansion dwellers elsewhere in Gladwyne and they kicked up a similar fuss, would the township treat them the same way? We know people get upset when we draw it along socioeconomic lines like this, but hey money talks, the rest of us walks.

Public Works Committee Date: 2/6/2008 7:45 PM

PUBLIC HEARING

Public Hearing to receive Presentation of Needs Assessment Study for Sanitary Sewers on River Road – Ed Pluciennik, Township Engineer. (Exhibit “A” – Memorandum to the Township Manager from the Director of Public Works; Memorandum to the Director of Public Works from the Township Engineer; Needs Assessment Study prepared by the Township Engineer).

PUBLIC COMMENT

RIVER ROAD SANITARY SEWER ASSESSMENT REPORT (Ward 2)

Consider for recommendation to the Board approval of the recommendations of the River Road Sanitary Sewer Assessment Report. (Exhibit “A” – Memorandum to the Township Manager from the Director of Public Works)

PUBLIC COMMENT

AMENDMENTS TO THE TOWNSHIP SEWAGE FACILITY PLAN (ACT 537)

Consider for recommendation to the Board that the Township Secretary be authorized to advertise a Public Hearing to be held February 20, 2008, to consider amendments to the Township Sewage Facility Plan (Act 537).

PUBLIC COMMENT

ORDINANCE FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF SANITARY SEWER ALONG
RIVER ROAD (Ward 2)

Consider for recommendation to the Board that the Township Secretary be authorized to advertise an ordinance for the construction of sanitary sewers along River Road. This would include authorization to complete the final plans and the Township’s intention to assess the benefited property owners. The ordinance would be contingent upon receiving DEP approval for the necessary amendments to the Township’s Act 537 Plan.

Oh and Commissioner Rosenzweig? You are correct, people shouldn't chat over you in the audience, but hey you know, you might catch more flies with honey than vinegar, ok?

And did we hear right, or in a time when the budget is a hot topic, is another compensated position being added or did we mishear? Hey Chiefs, how many taxpayer funded Indians do we need?

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Submitted by SaveArdmoreCoalition on Thu, 2008-02-14 12:41.
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Uh huh, uh huh and where did you hear this story before? Here!

River Road Residents Pipe Up Over Sewers
Longtime Residents Grapple With Issue Of Lm Extending Lines To Their Community
By Cheryl Allison

ARDMORE – Ever since the first residents of Gladwyne's River Road purchased their properties from the Reading Railroad in the 1950s, they've held it as a point of pride that their neighborhood is a bit apart and a bit different from the more urban areas of Lower Merion to the east and the estate homes to the west.Now they may soon be connected to the township in a way that's causing some mixed emotions.

The board of commissioners took the first steps last week to extend sanitary sewers to the secluded area along the bank of the Schuylkill River.

And although homeowners understand the time has probably come to switch from their on-lot wastewater systems for environmental and other reasons, that doesn't ease the pain of what could be a mandated $25,000 expense to connect....homeowners, many of whom are longtime, older residents on fixed or moderate incomes, said the issues cannot be separated....It was the new development and redevelopment of River Road lots, bringing along with it an increase in requests for installation of new on-lot treatment systems, that spurred the DEP to ask for the study two years ago.

A couple of property owners have gone through the process to install systems that meet DEP certification requirements, Township Engineer Ed Pluciennik said, but those systems are costly. Because the area is prone to flooding, and because older systems may begin to fail, there is the potential for waste to enter the Schuylkill River....Pluciennik estimated the cost to install the public portion of the new sewer line to Hollow Road at $750,000. If that cost were divided equally between the 53 existing, planned or subdividable lots in the study area, it comes to a little less than $15,000 per lot. (Owners of larger properties who do not give up their right to subdivide could be subject to the charge for each potential lot.)

In addition to paying that share for the public portion, homeowners would see another $12,000 to $13,000 in costs to install grinder pumps and piping on their lots to connect to the main sewer.

Rufo's offer to install the public line is estimated to reduce the cost to property owners by $2,000 to $3,000, Pluciennik said.

The cost of sewer improvements is a situation other township residents have faced. But there is a unique factor complicating the River Road project, residents point out.

A large portion of the street frontage in the project area, from the Gladwyne Veterans of Foreign Wars post to Hollow Road, runs along Flat Rock Park. Township properties like the park are not subject to assessment. Recognizing the unusual extent of the park property on River Road, however, the proposal calls for the township to contribute $60,000 to the project.

River Road resident Charles Burrall figured that contribution represents less than 9 percent of the project cost. "No other Lower Merion community has been expected to absorb the cost" for such a large "unfunded public portion," Burrall said.

Bob Foulk Jr. described the potential impact on his community.
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