City council reappoints three to Water & Sewer Commission amid questions on rates, abatements and treatment-plant project

The Springfield City Council confirmed reappointment of Vanessa Otero, Dan Rodriguez and Matthew Donnillon to the Springfield Water and Sewer Commission on April 7 after a detailed public and council review of rate increases, assistance programs and a large capital project.

Councilors pressed commissioners about recurring annual rate increases, the commission’s customer-assistance and abatement policies, apprenticeships and project-labor agreements for the water-plant rebuild, and whether contaminants are present in the city’s drinking water.

The question of rates came up repeatedly. Resident speakers and councilors noted rate increases that the commission has described publicly as in the 6.5 percent to 8.5 percent range in the near term. Commissioner Vanessa Otero said the commission bonds for capital improvements and that rate revenue is the commission’s only recurring source of income: “Our only source of revenue are our ratepayers,” she said, adding the commission bonds for capital projects and may need to raise rates to support bonding.

Nut graf: The council’s hearing combined confirmation votes with scrutiny of how the utility manages affordability and capital needs. Commissioners emphasized legal and financial constraints — bonds and federal financing programs — while councilors pressed for clearer outreach to residents, more flexible assistance rules for veterans and seniors, and faster responsiveness to water-quality concerns.

Most of the council’s substantive questioning focused on four topics:

1) Customer assistance and abatements. Councilors and residents described eligibility limits. Juan LaTore III and others urged broader access for seniors and veterans, and changes to the department’s abatement policy, which critics described as too restrictive. Commissioners described an existing customer-assistance program and a long-standing senior discount; commissioners said eligibility rules are set by commission policy and could be reviewed. Commissioner Dan Rodriguez said the customer-assistance program was relatively new and is being used: “Year to date, we had 430 ratepayers apply and get awarded $80,000,” he said. Commissioners acknowledged that outreach is uneven and encouraged the council to help publicize the programs.

2) Abatement rules. Councilors and speakers described an abatement policy that allows a homeowner to seek one abatement per lifetime for water charges tied to leaks and other household incidents. Councilors urged the commission to consider repeated or time-limited abatements (for example, once every five years) to avoid unfair hardship; commissioners said changes would require formal policy action and possibly budget adjustments.

3) Water-treatment plant and disinfection byproducts. Commissioners and staff said the city is rebuilding an aging treatment plant first designed decades before current regulations and that the estimated project cost has been about $300 million and could rise. Joshua (Josh) Schimmel, director of Water & Sewer operations, told the council that the long-term plan is to replace facilities built in 1930 and 1974 and noted the treatment plant cannot remove certain disinfection byproducts produced when chlorine reacts with naturally occurring organic material in the reservoir. Schimmel said required testing has not found PFAS or PFOA in Springfield’s drinking water: “All of the testing to date has shown no forever chemicals or PFAS and PFOA in any of the drinking water,” he said. He described disinfection byproducts as the regulated concern prompting a treatment-plant rebuild and said the water is safe to drink.

4) Project-labor agreements (PLAs) and workforce goals. Councilors asked about a PLA offered near the end of the procurement process for the treatment-plant work. Commissioners said they weighed PLA benefits against the risk of slowing or jeopardizing low-interest federal financing (WIFIA) and noted legal challenges in other communities. Dan Rodriguez said the board initially declined a PLA because counsel warned it could delay financing; commissioners later ensured PLA-like protections were included in bid language so the financing schedule would not be put at risk. Commissioners stressed that many bidders on large projects are already union contractors and that the commission sought to preserve local hiring and apprenticeship goals within procurement constraints.

On appointments and process: Councilors raised process concerns after the council heard that two of the three seats were “out of turn” — meaning reappointments were late or notices were not timely — and several councilors said they would investigate why routine reappointments were missed. Joshua Schimmel told the council that commissioners’ statutory terms continue until replaced and that the water commission works with the mayor’s office on nominations, but councilors pressed for a clearer, more public appointment process so qualified applicants can apply.

Votes and next steps: The council confirmed all three commissioners. Commissioners and staff promised further review of assistance eligibility, public outreach and the steps the commission will take to explain the treatment-plant timeline and project budget to the council and the public.

Ending: Councilors said they would continue oversight as the treatment-plant project proceeds, press for stronger outreach about assistance programs, and follow up on the appointment-timing problems the council identified.

(Quoted remarks are taken from the April 7 Springfield City Council meeting.)