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GHI and Greenbelt press WSSC, county on aging pipes and storm drains as city readies mapping and grant steps
Summary
At a Greenbelt City Council work session, GHI leaders told the council aging supply and waste pipes and failing storm drains are urgent safety and affordability risks; the city said it will reengage engineering firm Charles P. Johnson, draft a letter to WSSC and pursue mapping and grant options.
Emmett Jordan, Greenbelt's mayor, and leaders of Greenbelt Homes, Inc. (GHI) used a council work session to press for concrete steps on aging water infrastructure and stormwater systems that GHI says were installed in the 1930s and are nearing the end of their useful life.
GHI board chair Stefan Bridal and general manager James Claggett told the council their community of about 1,600 members includes roughly 600 homes built in the mid-1930s and 1,000 from the early 1940s. Bridal said a recent internal pipe-replacement pilot went well and GHI hopes to expand interior and exterior pipe replacement to about 100 homes next year.
Why it matters: failing supply and waste lines can cause leaks, street damage and chronic service disruptions; replacement scope can run into the millions of dollars and poses affordability risks for residents on fixed incomes. Bridal said WSSC (the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission) has been resistant to agreeing to wholesale replacements of mains and laterals despite a longstanding memorandum of understanding that assigns responsibilities between parties.
Bridal described negotiations with WSSC dating back to 2008 and told council the board has consulted an attorney experienced with WSSC. Mayor Jordan recalled a 1958 MOU that previously allocated maintenance responsibilities and said the city stands behind GHI; the mayor said the city will draft a letter and participate in renewed negotiations with WSSC.
Stormwater and easements: GHI and city staff discussed a separate but related problem: stormwater mains and laterals on GHI property that were expected to convey to county responsibility after federal-property conveyances. City staff said it is working with Charles P. Johnson & Associates to map systems and draft easement agreements but that some easements were not accepted by the county in prior decades. Staff cited delays caused when a CPJ engineer went on emergency leave and said mapping of a Woodland Way pilot should restart soon.
Funding options and technical standards: council and staff discussed federal and state funding programs, including EPA-related grants for removing lead and galvanized lines. Staff said many grant programs require a local match and that engineering and cost estimates are necessary before applying. A resident asked whether the county enforces a minimum pipe diameter for acceptance; staff said such a minimum exists but did not have the exact figure and pledged to provide specifications.
Next steps: the city agreed to reengage CPJ to finish mapping, to draft a joint letter to WSSC, and GHI said it will reconstitute a negotiating team while consulting legal counsel. City staff also said they will compile grant and cost-estimate work to support funding applications.
