[Adopted 11-10-2003 by L.L. No. 6-2003]
The Town Board of the Town of Wilna, pursuant to the authority
granted it under Article 12 of the Town Law and §§ 10
and 20 of the Municipal Home Rule Law, hereby enacts as follows.
The Town Board of the Town of Wilna acts as Commissioners for
the Town of Wilna Water District No. 1. The Town Board has previously
established rules and regulations for Water District No. 1 by resolution,
which rules and regulations established rates. The Town Board wishes
now to reconsider those rates and re-adopt them and the rules and
regulations as a local law. It is the purposes of this article to
do so.
The following rules and regulations are established by the Supervisor
and Town Board of the Town of Wilna and every person or establishment
who shall be supplied or whose property shall be supplied automatically
accepts said rules and the same shall constitute a part of the contract
between such persons and the Town of Wilna. The word "consumer" shall
be used in these rules and regulations. It shall mean the owner of
the property.
A.
Issuance of bills; collection. Water bills shall be issued on a quarterly
basis and will be sent by regular mail. Water bills shall be addressed
to the tax billing address for the parcel.
B.
Current water and connection charges. Water and connection charges
may be changed by resolution passed by the Town of Wilna Town Board
after a public hearing is held. All obligations of any nature due
Wilna Water District No. 1 which remain unpaid as of December 1 of
each year may be charged by the Town as special assessments and collected
as the same.
Application for water service from the street main to the curb
stop where the shutoff valve will be located must be submitted 48
hours prior to commencing work.
A separate tap is to be required for each lot supplied with
water. However, the tap is the responsibility of the consumer and
all costs will be borne by the consumer. The Operation and Maintenance
contractor will oversee and inspect the tap process. Tapping can only
be done by an experienced contractor, which will be verified by the
Operation and Maintenance contractor.
A.
There will be no charge for the hookups performed during the initial
construction of Wilna Water District No. 1. Each additional connection
will include one meter per property. All subsequent hookups to the
Town water lines from the main to the consumer property line/curb
stop will be $400. The installation and materials of the service from
the main to the consumer is the responsibility of the owner.
B.
Repair of leaks from the main to the curb stop will be performed
by the O&M contractor at no expense to the consumer. The installation
of the service from the curb stop and subsequent repairs must be borne
by the consumer.
The pipe from the curb stop to the consumer meter will be Type
K copper with compression fittings. Such pipe specifications may be
revised by the O&M contractor or the Town of Wilna Town Board.
Service pipes will be required to be laid not less than 54 inches
below the surface of the earth. This applies to the established grade
where it has been fixed. No trench will be backfilled in any manner
before inspection for leaks and clearances is made by the O&M
contractor or their representative.
The trench opening by the owner or contractor for tapping onto
the service shutoff for the installation of the water line shall be
of sufficient size and have proper safety precaution to accommodate
the work to be accomplished. The owner or contractor will make alterations
to the opening as instructed by the O&M contractor. The backfilling
of the trench will be made by the owner or contractor. The material
used will be sand in the immediate area around the pipe to a depth
of one foot. The remainder of the trench will be bank-run gravel,
tamped every six inches until the trench is back to original grade.
The owner of the property into which the water is supplied by
a service pipe will be required to maintain in perfect order, at his/her
own expense, said service pipe from the curb-stop to his/her building.
Failure to make necessary repairs after due notice, in writing, by
the Town Board will result in the water being turned off until such
time that satisfactory repairs are made. Maintenance of the service
pipe from the main to the curb stop will be performed by the O&M
contractor.
Where required by the New York State Department of Health Sanitary
Code, Part 5, or local law, a backflow preventer of a suitable type
that is currently approved by the Health Department must be installed.
No consumer is allowed any cross-connection from any other source
of water under the Rules and Regulations, Part 5 of the Health Department.
When such cross-connection is found, the water from the Town water
system will be turned off immediately to prevent contamination of
the Town system. The consumer will disconnect alternate source as
required by Part 5 of the Rules and Regulations.
No curb stop will be operated by anyone except a representative
of the O&M contractor.
A.
Operation of fire hydrants. No fire hydrant will be operated by anyone
except a representative of the O&M contractor or the Fire Department.
A.
All water services except those used exclusively for fire purposes
shall be metered. Meters shall be obtained from the O&M contractor
and all municipal repairs and testing must be made by the O&M
contractor.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
B.
Residential and commercial water meters shall be furnished by the
O&M contractor at a cost to the consumer and maintained by the
O&M contractor. Damage to the meter not caused by the O&M
contractor is the responsibility of the homeowner, including cost
for removal, repair, testing and replacement.
C.
All water meters must be placed in an accessible part of the building
or basement so that they may be read or removed. Meters will be required
to have a shutoff valve placed inside the basement wall ahead of the
meter. All water meters must be in a heated environment to eliminate
freezing.
D.
All water meters, when set, shall be sealed to prevent tampering.
No person except an authorized representative of the O&M contractor
shall break such seals or tamper with said meter.
Any employee of the O&M contractor, upon proper identification,
shall have the right to enter any premises where municipal water is
being supplied for the purpose of inspecting, installing, removing,
or reading a meter, plumbing and fixtures of the water service and
all work in connection with the service.
A.
Debt retirement: $30 per quarter or $120 per EDU per year.
B.
O&M: $17.50 per quarter or $70 per year per account.
C.
Water usage: $63 per 1,200 cu. ft. min. per quarter; $5.25 per 100
cu. ft. over the minimum.
D.
Water turn-on charge: $50.
E.
Water turnoff charge: $50.
F.
Charge for new meter and installation: $220.
G.
A schedule of EDUs is attached as Exhibit A.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Said Table of Equivalent Dwelling Units (EDUs) for Water District No. 1 is included as an attachment to this chapter.
H.
Adjustments to rates. Town Board Town of Wilna may annually adjust
rates by resolution of the Board.
In the event of an emergency, including, but not limited to,
breaks in the water main, the Town shall not be liable for any damage
which may result to any person or premises from the shutting off or
the water from any main or service for any purpose whatsoever, even
in cases where notification is not given.
A.
When a building is torn down and the water service is no longer required
to the property or properties, the owner of said property is required
to excavate at the water main so that the abandoned water line can
be disconnected from the water main. The owner is responsible for
refilling the excavation.
B.
If the employees of the O&M contractor do the actual disconnection
then the owner will be responsible for any costs associated with the
disconnection by the O&M contractor, and/or if the owner hires
a contractor to disconnect, the owner will pay the costs for the O&M
contractor to inspect the disconnection.
If a meter fails to accurately record the amount of water used,
the consumer will be charged at the average daily consumption, the
average of the last four quarters. The same practice shall be followed
in the event that a meter cannot be read.
In any building with multiple meters, there shall be a main
shutoff just inside the wall and individual shutoffs for each meter
in the building. It shall be the responsibility of the owner to provide
the meter readings if the meters are not accessible.
Any person, or persons, firm or corporation violating any of
the provisions of these rules, regulations and ordinances hereby enacted
shall, upon conviction, be fined a minimum of $25 and a maximum of
$250 or imprisoned in the county jail for not more than 15 days, or
both. These rules, regulations and ordinances may be enforced by injunction.
When a property owner or tenant requires more water than the
existing water pipe can deliver, it is the responsibility of the property
owner to pay the cost of enlargement of said water line from the water
main to the building. The enlargement of the waterline will be considered
the same as a new water service.
A.
Pools filled by the resident using their domestic water supply will
not incur any additional charges.
B.
If the resident requests that the pool be filled off an existing
hydrant, the O&M contractor will perform this service at a cost
of $200 plus actual cost of water as measured through a temporary
meter on the hydrant at the current cost of the water.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
A.
In the event of a major break in a water main or drought conditions
that deplete the water supply available to the Town of Wilna Water
District No. 1, the Town Board may order a conservation of water declaration.
Times for the restriction will be set by the Town Board. The order
prohibits the use of water to wash cars, driveways, water gardens,
shrubs, lawns, flowers and the filling of pools, etc.
B.
The Town may have to issue a "boil water" advisory through the media
which could be caused by a major break, drought, or contamination
of the water supply. The "boil water" advisory will stay in effect
until such time as the Department of Health, through tests, has declared
the water safe to use.
Water usage for firefighting will be estimated and the amount
subtracted from the actual master meter readings. Verification will
consist of review of flow charts at the water plant, verification
with the Fire Department the times they were called out of service
and back in service, and then compare the increase in the finish flow
and the tank level chart.
Should any sections or provisions of this article be declared
invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions of this article.