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By GLEN WERLING
Fine tuning is part of the process of turning a dream into reality.
Members of the Ossian Town Council have been dreaming about a much better drinking water system for the town for about seven years and have been in the process of fine tuning their dreams ever since.
The problem for the council has been more pressing needs in other areas of infrastructure.
The council chose to first address the problems with the town’s sewage plant and lines. That was accomplished through a $3.5 million sewage line and plant upgrade accomplished in 2006 and 2007.
Then, the town was faced with a major stormwater project. At first the project was billed as a $2 million plus project that would address 10 problem areas in the town. That was eventually whittled down to a program to address projects individually with the worst problem area—the Melching Addition—to be addressed first with a $319,000 project.
Now, the council can turn its focus seriously toward the water project.
Beginning the Process
When the council switched town engineers last year, it asked new engineer Ed Biskis of Fleis & Vandenbrink to study what needs to be done to the town’s water system to bring it to where it should be.
Biskis and fellow engineer Jocques Plothow returned this past winter with a $7,359,300 answer.
Although, they assured the council that this could be broken down into a 20-year master plan.
The two engineers began the process by providing the council with a brief, but fairly detailed list of exactly what needs to be done to make the Ossian water system first rate again. Toward that recommendation, Biskis presented an overall $7 million-plus project as a three-phase project.
Biskis and Plothow did inform the council, though, that Phase I needs to be accomplished soon if the town is going to stem the increasing tide of water main breaks and provide a more reliable distribution system to its customers.
Biskis pointed out to the council in the combined years of 2006 and 2007, the town had 143 water main breaks—and each one of those cost at least $2,000 to fix. He added that 87 percent of the town’s water lines are below standard.
Phase I originally included replacement of more than three miles of the worst of the worst water mains, and stand-by power generators for wells numbers two and five. Phase I was estimated to cost $2,759,000—that included construction, contingencies, engineering, legal, administration and bonding costs.
“This first phase is a must have,” said Biskis, adding, “These are mains that need to be fixed and brought up to code. Doing this will bring back power and give more firm capacity” to the town’s water system.
Phase II would have replaced about a mile and a half of water mains and upgrade the capacity of well number five to 350 gallons per minute. It was projected to cost $851,100—if it were started today. Obviously the longer it’s delayed, the more it will cost.
“We believe this will improve the distribution system greatly,” said Biskis.
Last, and most costly, was Phase III. It included a water treatment plant and two new wells, a stand-by generator for the water treatment plant and the two new wells, and nearly a mile of 12-inch raw and treated water mains. The total cost was estimated at $3,031,400.
Once again, that’s in 2008 dollars, cautioned Biskis.
Biskis again admitted the water treatment is something that can be done in 20 years, once the bond issue or loan for the other water main improvements is paid for. But, he cautioned, it will obviously be far more expensive to build in 2028 than it will be to build it in 2008.
“It’s this simple, the water plant is something nice to have, but you need to focus on the lines now,” said Biskis.
During those March brainstorming meetings about the project, Biskis told the council members there were three ways the town could consider funding such a major project—bonding, the state revolving fund loan or rural development.
If the council chose to fund the projects through rural development or the state’s revolving loan fund, it could be about 18 months before ground is broken, Biskis observed. If the council chose to float a bond, Phase I could probably be moved up with ground-breaking sometime this year.
Rethinking the phases
After deciding that a $7.5 million project would place too much of a burden on Ossian water rate payers, the council sent Biskis and Plothow back to the drawing board. They returned with a modified project consolidating Phases I & II and delaying Phase III as perhaps something that could be addressed 20 years from now.
The new Phase I includes generators at wells two and five, water line replacement and upgrading the well capacity at well number five.
The cost was estimated by Biskis at $4,860,000.
Phase II would add the water treatment plant and two new wells at an estimated cost of $2,667,000.
Now no more phases
After meeting with representatives from the United States Department of Agriculture Department of Rural Development (RD) to see about landing a low interest RD loan to fund the project, Biskis discovered that RD would look more favorably on the p[roject if the phases were eliminated and the two were combined into one project.
It was back again to the drawing board.
Some slight modifications have been made and now there is one project with an estimated cost of $4.2 million.
What this means
to the rate payer
Jeff Rowe of H.J. Umbaugh & Associates, the town’s financial advisor, has spent about as much time brainstorming the impact to the rate payer as F&V has spent engineering the project and has come up with several different scenarios for funding the project.
All involved see RD funds as the best option. The loan can be stretched out over 40 years with a no-penalty early payback possible.
In a nutshell, according to Rowe assuming a $4.2 million project funded by an RD loan, a typical 5,000-gallon-a-month water customer could see a rate monthly rate increase from the current $19.95 a month to $32.22 a month.
However, the impact of that rate increase could be mitigated by three factors—obtaining a $500,000 grant from the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA), applying $200,000 in County Economic Development Income Tax upfront toward the project and applying $100,000 in already accrued funds toward the project. All that could result in that $19.95 monthly water bill only increasing to $30.09 a month.
Rowe also recommended a two-year phase-in with about half of the increase coming in 2009 and the other half in 2010.
The go-ahead
Keep in mind, at this time all of this is speculation. The council members have still not initiated any steps beyond exploratory ones for a water project. As town manager Luann Martin observed, this could change again tomorrow.
But the council is taking its first steps—perhaps just baby ones at this point—toward finally turning the dream of a better water system for Ossian into a reality.
glenw@news-banner.com