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Council tables out‑of‑city water-connection ordinance after debate on infrastructure costs and cost recovery
Summary
An ordinance to allow a water connection to a property in North Smithfield (25-O-11) was tabled for a work session after council members questioned the long-term cost of installing about 1,000 feet of 12-inch main and whether the city could recover those infrastructure expenses.
Council members on Feb. 3 voted to table an ordinance (25-O-11) that would authorize an out-of-city connection to the Woonsocket Waterworks System, after staff and elected officials raised questions about infrastructure costs and rate recovery.
Planning and Public Works staff explained the proposed connection would require roughly 1,000 feet of 12-inch water line along Route 146. Director Pagliarini told the council that contractor estimates for that work range from about $300 to $500 per linear foot, which would place the construction cost in the low hundreds of thousands of dollars. He said recouping that cost from water sales can take many years: "Even on the low end, that's $300,000 for just the pipe... how many years will it take you to recoup that money?" Pagliarini said, adding that a comparable local water user paid roughly $27,000 in FY 2024 on similar volume and that full cost recovery is unlikely in a short timeframe.
Council members emphasized that the ordinance's written language requires the out-of-city applicant to pay for the infrastructure and maintenance in perpetuity, but several members wanted additional written assurances and engineering detail. Councilman Kenoyer moved to table the ordinance to permit a work session and a fuller review of costs; the motion to table carried and the council scheduled a work session to examine the infrastructure and cost-recovery proposal.
Ending: The council directed staff to prepare engineering details and cost scenarios for the next meeting and to return with options for contract terms that protect the city's long-term fiscal interest.
