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Council adds $10,000 more for rate study

Financial forecast addendum approved

By John Faucher
The New London City Council, at its Sept. 8 meeting, approved an addendum of a five-year financial forecast to the current wastewater rate study being conducted by Baker Tilly.

The addendum will add another $10,000 to $13,000 to the cost of the study.

Wastewater Treatment Plant operator Ben Greuel informed the Public Works Committee on Sept. 1 that it would be beneficial for the city to add a five year financial forecast to the new rate study because there have been several major changes since the last study was done.

Several changes Greuel cited include the Saputo closure, infrastructure upgrades and employee reduction. He said the addendum would be beneficial to see how the city should address future needs.

Greuel said the additional cost would be on top of the $12,000 budgeted for the current rate study. The Public Works Committee recommended the council approval of the addendum.

At the Sept. 8 meeting, council member Tom O’Connell asked if the additional cost was a one-time fee, and he asked about out of pocket expenses cited in a letter from Baker Tilly.

Mayor Gary Henke reported that the addendum was a one-time fee and would not go over $13,000.

The council then unanimously approved the addendum.

Engineering services
The council also approved a $26,778 proposal from Martenson & Eisele for engineering services for Beacon Avenue and Wolf River Avenue street projects.

The scope of the project includes $18,178 for surveying and engineering, $3,180 to complete bidding services, $3,490 for construction staking and services, and $1,930 for project meetings and administration.

The firm anticipates the preliminary engineering designs by the end of November, and final construction and bid documents prepared by mid-January. Bid openings will likely occur in February 2016, with construction in spring/summer 2016.

Permit fees
The council approved the second reading of an ordinance to increase building permit fees. New London Building and Zoning Inspector Paul Hanlon initiated the amendment because of a recent building permit fee schedule study. He said the changes would make the city more consistent with fees charged by surrounding municipalities.

The council voted 9-1 to approve the fee increase. O’Connell voted no.
Court clerk
The council voted unanimously to increase the Clerk of Court hourly wage from $14.69 to $17.69 per hour. The Finance and Personnel Committee approved the increase at its Sept. 2 meeting, where it noted that the increase would not result in the court being over their original 2015 budget.

Property insurance
The council also unanimously approved a quote from Municipal Property Insurance Company for an annual amount of $41,675. Henke noted that with changes the state proposed to the property insurance fund the premium would have likely increased to roughly $65,000.

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