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Council authorizes bond up to $1.478 million to buy conservation easement to protect Bellamy Reservoir
Summary
Portsmouth City Council approved a resolution to borrow up to $1,478,000 to purchase a conservation easement on the Fernald property to protect the Bellamy Reservoir intake; staff said most of the cost will be covered by state and expected federal grants but timing uncertainty led to bonding now.
The Portsmouth City Council on April 7 voted to authorize a bond issue of up to $1,478,000 under the Municipal Finance Act to acquire a conservation easement on the Fernald property to protect the city's Bellamy Reservoir and its surface water intake.
Water Resources Manager Al Pratt told the council the parcel is roughly 45 acres with about three‑quarters of a mile of shoreline and sits immediately above the city's intake, where development could have a direct and immediate effect on water quality. Pratt said two state grants totaling $764,000 (a $739,000 award from the Drinking Water Groundwater Trust Fund and $25,000 from the Department of Environmental Services Local Source Water Protection Program) are in place. A third funding source -- $714,000 in congressionally directed federal funds -- has been requested but had not yet been disbursed at the time of the meeting.
"The area right around the reservoir is the most important because this is direct runoff," Pratt said, explaining that the slope and location make the parcel a high priority for protection. He said the city is bonding now to allow the purchase to proceed promptly while grant paperwork and federal approvals are completed.
Members of the Safe Water Advisory Group and other residents urged the council to approve the bond. Andrea Amico, who leads the city's Safe Water Advisory Group, said the city cannot treat water as easily replaceable and praised the proactive purchase. "You can't put a price on clean water," Amico said during the public hearing.
Resident and water professional Brian Guts also spoke in support, noting the reservoir's relatively undeveloped character and saying protecting the parcel preserves both the resource and its setting.
The council opened a public hearing, heard two supporters, and then voted by roll call to adopt the bond resolution. Roll call recorded Councilor Taber, Councilor Cook, Councilor Dutton, Councilor Blaylock, Councilor Bagley, Councilor Monroe and Mayor McEachern voting in the affirmative; the clerk announced the vote as unanimous.
Action taken: the council authorized a bond issue and/or notes under the Municipal Finance Act not to exceed $1,478,000 to purchase a conservation easement on the Fernald property to protect the Bellamy Reservoir water quality. The city expects to apply state grant funds and a requested federal allocation to reimburse the bonded funds as they are received.
