Woodstock residents press town on water contract, hydrant flushing and in‑house operator options

At the Board of Selectmen meeting, resident John McKay raised a series of operational concerns about the town's recent water-operations contract and the condition of hydrants and gate valves in Woodstock.

The discussion centered on a clause in the contract with the outside operator (referred to in the meeting as “Wade in the Water”) that requires “distribution system flushing annually.” McKay said the contract does not define how long crews must flush or what constitutes “clean” water after flushing, and he asked the board to require a measurable flushing standard. “I found 2 of them that were leaking because they were not shut off all the way,” McKay said, describing past problems with hydrants that froze, gate valves full of dirt and parts of the system that could not be flushed at the line end because the line is not looped.

Board members and staff acknowledged prior operational failures and…