[Adopted 3-13-2017 by L.L. No. 4-2017]
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 of the State of New York, hereby
enacts as follows.
The Town Board of the Town of Wilna hereby finds that it is
necessary to amend its water rules and regulations to encompass the
Herrings Water District. It is the purpose of this article to do so.
The following rules and regulations are established by the Supervisor
and the Town Board of the Town of Wilna for every water district established
by the Town, and every person or establishment who shall be supplied
or whose property shall be supplied automatically accept 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.
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.
Water and connection charges shall be established by the resolution
passed by the Town of Wilna Town Board after a public hearing is held.
All obligations of any nature due which remain unpaid as of October
1 of each year may be charged by the Town as special assessments and
collected as 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.
Hookups to the Town water lines from the main to the consumer property
line/curb stop will be $400. The installation and materials 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 or high-density polyethylene (HDPE)
with compression fittings as approved by the Town O&M contractor.
Such pipe specifications may be revised by the O&M contractor
or 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 of 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
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.
No fire hydrants 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 place 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.
Specific charges.
(2)
The Town Board shall meet annually to establish a budget for usage
charges as part of its annual budget process and shall establish a
rate in accordance with that budget. A hearing on the annual Town
Budget shall include consideration of water rate for each district.
Additionally, the Town Board may hold separate hearings to adjust
rate at any time that circumstance requires. The Town Board shall
also establish fees for water turnoff/water turn-on, and meter installation
from time to time by resolution.
B.
Adjustment of rates. Rates may be adjusted periodically by the Town
Board of the Town of Wilna after hearing by resolution of the Board.
C.
Billing dates.
D.
Benefit assessment.
E.
Water bills that remain unpaid for 30 days after the billing date
shall have an additional 10% interest charge assessed on the balance
due for the current quarter. After 60 days, an additional 5% penalty
will be assessed for every thirty-day period after 60 days. Bills
that remain unpaid as November 1 of each year may be charged by the
Town as special assessments and collected as same.
F.
Any water service that is over 90 days' delinquent in payment
may be turned off for nonpayment on 10 days' notice sent to the
billing address and posted at the property address.
G.
Any property owner requesting that the water be turned off will make
a request to the Operation and Maintenance contractor. There will
be a cost to turn off the water and a charge also to turn the water
back on of $50 each.
H.
In the event that a meter is damaged or destroyed through no fault
of the District, costs of a replacement meter, plus the actual labor
cost to install, shall be charged to the owner.
In the event of an emergency, including, but not limited to,
breaks in the water mains, the Town shall not be liable for any damage
which may result to any person or premises from the shutting off of
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 $100 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 requires more water than the existing
water pipe can deliver, it is the responsibility of the property owner
to pay the cost of the 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.
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, 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 or driveways; water gardens, shrubs,
lawns, or 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.
If any part of this chapter shall be found to be void, voidable,
or unenforceable for any reason whatsoever, it shall not affect the
validity or enforceability of any remaining section or provision of
this chapter.
