On April 11, 2016, the Board of Selectmen again discussed the Grinder Pump maintenance policy based on Article 24, which passed overwhelmingly at the November, 2015 Town meeting advising the Selectmen to establish a maintenance policy for the grinder pumps. See the Falmouth Enterprise article âTown Will Assume Responsibility for Maintaining Grinder Pumpsâ at http://www.capenews.net/falmouth/news/town-will-assume-responsibility-for-maintaining-grinder-pumps/article_d75edc53-9f9e-5a3f-a0f9-830b56278d7b.html
After a lengthy discussion, with about a dozen citizens speaking in favor of town ownership and/or permanent maintenance of the grinder pumps, the Selectmen opted to direct the Town manager to create a “working groupâ to make a recommendation to the Board for their further consideration.
The draft policy on the Town website at http://www.falmouthmass.us/wastewater/lpssa%20%E2%80%93%20grinder%20pump%20maintenance%20options%20presentation%203-21-15.pdf originally listed 4 options, the first being only to honor the 5 year warranty. The 4th and most comprehensive option called for âContract Maintenanceâ which âwould provide grinder pump owners with maintenance service at no cost, except in case of abuse or failure to responsibly install or operate the pump. Town would manage maintenance contract, instead of individual homeowners communicating with pump representative over warranty service.â
At the Selectmenâs meeting, Howard Grosser, President of the FHMNA and co-sponsor of Article 24, presented âOption 5â which would call for the Town to take ownership and maintain the grinder pumps on a permanent basis.
OPTION 5
Whereas the low pressure (grinder) pumps are integral components of the Townâs sewer system â these pumps are Town property and will be repaired and replaced when necessary by the Town, at Town expense, except if a repair or replacement is a result of abuse of Town property. In the case of misuse and/or abuse of a grinder pump, the property owner will be responsible for the cost of the repair and or pro-rated replacement.
Either by town employees or a third party service provider, the Town will arrange for temporary power/generator service during extended power outages.
The Town will reimburse property owners for the additional costs associated with the installation and operation of the grinder pumps in the form of:
âȘ a one time lump sum payment to defray the additional cost of a pump installation as compared to a gravity installation
âȘ an annual payment of $50.00 per year to compensate each property owner for the cost of electricity to run the pump and for the rental of the 3 square feet of each property dedicated to housing the townâs pumping equipment.
Mr. Grosser will be a member of the working group and intends to forward this option on behalf of our members.
If you would like to share your thoughts, please email them to info@fhmna.org and/or to Town Manager at jsuso@falmouthmass.us
For a summary of the Selectmenâs meeting, see the Enterprise article âGrinder Pumps Take Center Stage At Selectmen’s Meetingâ, April 15, 2016, at http://www.capenews.net/falmouth/news/grinder-pumps-take-center-stage-at-selectmen-s-meeting/article_b77d5ded-9b14-5a77-9d17-b2650b84b558.html