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Selectboard delays decision on wastewater fee structure after committee recommends tax-based debt support
Summary
The Village Wastewater Committee recommended including debt service in the town's grand-list property tax to support construction; RCAP estimated roughly $16 per year for a $250,000 property, but the Selectboard requested further cost details before approving a fee plan.
The Selectboard on May 19 did not adopt a final fee schedule for the village wastewater project and asked the Village Wastewater Committee to return with more detailed cost and user-fee breakdowns.
Gary Hedman, chair of the Village Wastewater Committee, reported the working group recommended including municipal debt service in the local property-tax calculation to support construction costs. He said estimates prepared by the Rural Community Assistance Partnership (RCAP) put the annual debt-service cost at about $16 for a property assessed at $250,000. Committee members argued the project benefits the entire municipality and that some properties that can connect now may not be able to install replacement septic systems later if state regulations change.
Selectboard members raised concerns about shifting costs to taxpayers; Chair Tom Cavanagh noted prior Selectboard members had told residents they would not need to pay for the system. The board asked for clearer comparisons of the three RCAP fee-structure options and a breakdown of town-level versus user-level costs before any connection materials are distributed. Taylor Prouty said he would abstain from future votes on fee structure as a potential system connector.
