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Residents press board on grinder outages, monitoring and monthly rates for Saguenay Lake hookups
Summary
Multiple residents raised concerns during public comment about prolonged power outages affecting grinder stations, lack of visible indicators or alarms, the fairness of monthly assessments for seasonal homes, and the process for relocating equipment; the presenter said grinders are district‑owned, have alarms, and maintenance is included in the monthly rate.
Residents at the May 26 meeting of the LaPorte County Regional Sewer and Water District Board pressed the district for clearer information about grinder‑station reliability, billing for seasonal homeowners, and how the district will respond to extended power outages.
Michael Caulfield told the board he had experienced repeated power outages near Saguenay Lake, some lasting 18 hours or longer, and said he was unsure what would happen if grinder stations were inoperable for that length of time or if a reservoir or pit were to overfill and damage property. Another resident, who signed in at 5791 East Sagana Trail, said he found typical monthly sewer system costs in Indiana to range from $40 to $85 and that a projected starting assessment of roughly $116 felt high; he asked whether monthly assessments would cover routine inspections, motor maintenance, alarm testing, and major overhauls.
District presenter Dan responded to the questions during the engineering update: he said grinder stations are owned and operated by the district (not homeowners), that each station will include alarm horns and lights to indicate failures, and that operation and maintenance (including a budgeted number of grinder replacements) are factored into the current monthly rate. He added that homeowners will be required to install a backwater check valve on the six‑inch lateral at the property line to prevent sewage from backing up into houses if a grinder station fails. The presenter also said the district installs check valves on force mains and that collection‑system field staff will patrol the project area to check alarms and respond when issues occur.
Several commenters asked about the value of connecting during phase one when phases two and three remain unfunded; the board and presenter said phase one is financed and approved, and JPR (the district’s consultant) is continuing to seek subsidies for future phases. Separately, the presenter reported that contractors have discovered vandalism to pipe spools and that police reports have been filed; that discovery may require repairs to some pipe before pressure testing.
The board did not vote to change rates or to alter the connection process during the meeting; staff and the engineering consultant said they would follow up with residents and contractors on technical questions and coordinate next steps with affected homeowners.
