APP-2023-11 : MWRA LFAP I/I Loan/Grant - Authorize Borrowing of $1,330,000 of which 75% is a grant and 25% is a zero-interest loan

Transcript (~15 min @ 1:22:10)

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▶ 1:22:06 Leila Migliorelli: All right. Next we have appropriation 2023-11 mwra lfap. I slash I loan Grant authorized bowering bowering of 1.330 million of which 75% is a grant and 25% is zero interest loan tonight. We have city engineer Bonnie Reese here to speak on the order welcome.

▶ 1:22:31 Speaker 13: Hello.

▶ 1:22:33 Speaker 11: As you know, the water and sewer departments have been conducting a infiltration and flow removal program for many years and we have completed investigative work through face three. The reason that we are asking for the approval of these funds is to focus on fixing some of the defects that we found in the pipes through our investigative work. So we've done Smoke testing manhole inspections pipe inspections CCTV and we've identified locations where pipe needs to be replaced either through a trenchless process of cured and place lining or through open cut methods. We've also identified manholes that are leaking that need to be repaired. So this funding would be used probably over several years to help fund those construction projects. and as the memo States, it's a 75% Grant and 25% zero interest loan Catherine Armada took a look at the numbers and determined that with the retirement of other debt that is coming that this will have negligible effect on the on the budget the Annual payment for 10 years will be 33,250 to the Sewer Enterprise fund. So that's that's summary. I'd be happy to answer any questions though about the program.

▶ 1:24:15 Speaker 7: Council Williams sure

▶ 1:24:18 Speaker 11: Where we at?

▶ 1:24:20 Ryan Williams: I mean we've been doing it for for a while, but just you know, like a high level overview. How do you feel about the you know the kind of low hanging fruit the worst case scenarios?

▶ 1:24:31 Speaker 11: So the original program split the city up into 15 sub areas. We've so we've gone. Through we're in phase three each phase had probably four or five. I do believe that there will be more investigative work. This does get some of the low-hanging fruit. We're going after what our Consultants categorized as four and five criteria repairs. So pipe that is in imminent danger of failing pipe that's got holes in it manholes that are really really leaking because maybe they're old Brickman holes or something like that. So this will catch some of that low-hanging fruit and you know, as you know, probably already the further down the road you go the The less infiltration infiltration you're removing. So now now is the time to get this and see some results. I do not remember the estimate of what this should be removed. But I know we did we did some pipelining a few years ago. I think 2019 and the estimate of AI removal was about 85% of what they we went back this spring and did flow isolation in the pre-construction versus post-construction flow isolation numbers showed about 85% removal.

▶ 1:26:06 Ryan Williams: Is a significant portion of our infiltration problem do also to drainage problems.

▶ 1:26:16 Speaker 11: Not necessarily. I yeah, I'm not I wouldn't say that it would be so we're pipe tends to be fairly deep and the there were some manhole issues that were partially drainage related in a sense. We were getting a lot of inflow because the manhole covers themselves had cracks or holes in them. And those have

▶ 1:26:41 Ryan Williams: actually been replaced. I only ask because I know that we've talked about how the city's drainage budget is very low right? Correct. Yeah, that's

▶ 1:26:48 Speaker 11: different animal for everything. It's different

▶ 1:26:51 Ryan Williams: animal truth, but we have a lot of water problems and I know in my district especially with all the ledge and The Valleys we get a lot of flow coming down and pooling and people's yards and yes things like that. So no opportunity to address drainage issues or anything

▶ 1:27:08 Speaker 11: like that with these funds just this. No this money can only be used for II removal projects and they're you know, the m Ura is fairly strict about that as well.

▶ 1:27:21 Speaker 5: Thank you very much for the questions.

▶ 1:27:25 Mark Garipay: Counselor garepe thank you. Thank you madam chair. Thank you for being here. Just a couple quick questions. If we we've done some of the pre-work the smoke testing, I think wood for I believe in the last year or two. They were doing some smoke testing up there and we identified any streets that we're going to be if this passes what streets will be next.

▶ 1:27:45 Speaker 11: So that's in part of the overall plan that Western and Sampson put together for this. I do know that part of this money is going to be used to do Building Inspections. So the next step after smoke testing is to go into buildings that you or neighborhoods that you suspect may have illegal connections. Usually that's a sump pump if it's a residence and go into the basement and verify whether or not there is that connection there and then work with the residents to remove that connection and find a different way to discharge.

▶ 1:28:22 Mark Garipay: you talk about manhole covers and it just bringing up because recently it seems like the more and more I drive around and we get some fairly new newest streets that the manhole seemed to be sinking. Like if you look around you'll see around them. They it's starting to crack a little bit in the streets are only four or five years old. I think there were a couple in Lebanon Street. I just noticed recently. Is that way we're talking about here when we say repairing the manholes or

▶ 1:28:51 Speaker 11: No, that that would be a different issue and you know, let me know those locations if you see something like that the so the manhole rehab typically is as an older structure where it's a brick manhole and the mortar between the bricks has become deteriorated. So water's getting in or it could even be a precast concrete structure where the seam wasn't properly sealed and water is getting in water gets into manholes also through the junction where the pipe comes in and out of the manhole any place that there's any kind of connection that can happen. And then what we recently did was we did identify throughout the city a number of manhole covers that for whatever reason maybe it's because of melrose's drainage problems in the past. They had manhole covers that actually were cast with holes in them. So when it rained water got into the sewer system, so and then there were ones that were just damaged and broken. So we replaced those, but if you see settlement around a manhole that that's a that's a trenching issue and that definitely something that needs to be addressed. Okay. Thank

▶ 1:30:08 Mark Garipay: As I see him.

▶ 1:30:12 Speaker 7: Vice chair. Jamaleddine. Thank you madam chair.

▶ 1:30:19 Maya Jamaleddine: Thank you for being with us tonight. And you mentioned that there were some sewer holes leaks where they reported or it was fun discovered during a project.

▶ 1:30:32 Speaker 11: It was discovered during the CCTV inspection of the sewer pipes themselves, and we do have we keep a list of we call it our periodicals list of Sewer pipes that had seemed to have frequent backups and when that happens we go in with the TV camera and try to I identify what is causing those backups.

▶ 1:30:56 Maya Jamaleddine: are these like would that You know. give any kinds of alerts that we should probably do a CT wide a check on the rest of it or is it? Is it inclusive during this inspection? Like are we doing for every city-wide inspection for all the sewer

▶ 1:31:21 Speaker 11: Halls? So I believe that the long-term plan is is to do that inspection on all the pipes in the city and we so When you're doing III work you have you kind of do it in incremental steps so that you can hone in on where the worst problems are the quickest and so flow isolation is one way to do that flow isolation is done in the middle of the night. When most people are asleep not running their dishwasher the washing machine and if you see a large amount of flow in the pipe, then there that's an indication that there might be a lot of infiltration and so then you would go in with the TV camera and see if there are cracks or leaking joints or holes or other sources for water to get into the pipe.

▶ 1:32:14 Speaker 11: cause

▶ 1:32:15 Speaker 3: When we have that week.

▶ 1:32:18 Speaker 11: Well in the in the short term we're paying for that water to be treated at Deer Island. So it increases our our sewer bills letting that great. It's groundwater. So it's clean water letting it get into the pipe in the long term depending on the severity of the defect. You could get a collapsed sewer pipe.

▶ 1:32:39 Maya Jamaleddine: and when we have increase in the bills, that would be The residents that are seeing that increase

▶ 1:32:47 Speaker 11: yes, the rate payers see that increase. So are

▶ 1:32:50 Maya Jamaleddine: we suggesting that whenever? residency and increase in their In their bills to request that

▶ 1:33:03 Speaker 11: check. Oh, no. Okay. So it does it has an overall impact on the sewer rates but individual residents they're sewer rate is based on their water usage. So if they see an increase in their water and sewer bill, it's because they've been using more water. It may be that they have water leak and I know I know Lisa who works in our water billing department. She actually does an analysis every month and looks at accounts that have large water usage and she looks to see if they're patterns that might indicate that they have a leak in their water service or in their sprinkler system or something like that, but that that's a little bit different from this.

▶ 1:33:50 Speaker 7: counselor karmchatie

▶ 1:33:51 Manjula Karamcheti: Um, thank you so much for being here. And this information is very helpful to understand more about how we're looking at our aging infrastructure in regards to pipes and whatnot. It is such important work. And anything we can prevent is ideal something that I've learned that I didn't really know in relation to pipes and what's underground is sort of there are parts of the pipes that the city is responsible for in parts of the pipes that residents are responsible for in terms of like upkeep repair and it can be quite costly for for residents in the community. As a part of this inspection. Is it just the pipes that are sort of in these cities jurisdiction that are being looked at or are we also looking at those pieces of like sewer and piping that? Residents are responsible for in giving this giving that information to them ahead of time too in thinking about prevention and how to fix things before are we partnering are we collaborating or you know, is that a part of this?

▶ 1:35:07 Speaker 11: At this point we're just investigating the sewer Mains which is what is owned by the city. Obviously if we saw something that was a concern like a blocked Service as we're going through the main with the TV camera, they turned they stop at every service. They turn the camera and they look up the service for you know, three or four feet. They can see up the service. So if they saw something that was concerning then we would probably reach out to the homeowner. But at the moment there we're not tving the individual Residential Services.

▶ 1:35:45 Manjula Karamcheti: And what would you recommend to Residents who are sort of concerned because they have older homes older pipes are noticing things. What who should they contact? What should they do?

▶ 1:35:56 Speaker 11: So if if they are experiencing a problem because just because the home is old it still could be working fine. But if they're experiencing a problem then they need to find a company that does the CCTV of The Individual Services and and we can't really recommend one over another but there are plenty of them out there who can do that kind of work. They'll just come out with the TV camera and go in from the basement. And and do a TV analysis of that service.

▶ 1:36:36 Speaker 11: Thank but it's not it's not an expensive. So again, if they're not experiencing any problems, they probably don't want to do it.

▶ 1:36:44 Speaker 1: Thank you.

▶ 1:36:46 Speaker 7: Any other questions?

▶ 1:36:50 Speaker 5: The will of the committee I'll make a motion to prove to. Recommend. Sorry to the full counsel second.

▶ 1:36:58 Speaker 7: Okay motion to recommend made by counselor Williams second in by counselor sonella. That Mr. Clerk

▶ 1:37:06 Speaker 2: Vice chair Geraldine. Yes. Counselor McMaster. Yes counselor. Sonella. Yes counselor Eccles. Yes, counsel. Gerepe. Yes counselor Stewart. Yes councilor Carm Shady. Yes counselor bremski. Yes councilor Williams. Yes president gerritis. Yes. And chair Migliorelli. Yes, eleven. Yes a synonymous.