September 11, 2014 at 5:18 p.m.
District board deserves credit
Editorial
The Jay County Regional Sewer District Board used to be a disaster.
The key words in that sentence — used to be.
In the last 11 months, that situation has seen consistent improvement.
Last summer, confusion engulfed the board.
•The board president resigned in August.
•A series of meetings went by with the group unable to get enough members to show up to have a quorum, meaning it couldn’t conduct any meaningful business.
•No one involved, including the board attorney, was even sure how many members were supposed to be serving (making the question of a quorum even more confusing).
•An effort to raise sewer rates failed despite board approval because the group did not follow through by sending written notice to affected residents.
But the situation began to turn in late October after Jay County Commissioners appointed one of their own, Faron Parr. He joined other new members Phil Ford and Randy Mann, to bring the board to full membership.
At its first meeting back at full strength, the board debated the sewer increase it had tried to enact months earlier, eventually voting it down 4-3. And while rates have continued to be part of their conversation, members haven’t let that topic bog them down.
They’ve also worked to try to solve some of the other problems residents have had since sewers were installed.
After being delayed for months by the harsh winter weather, inspections in May found electrical connections were not installed according to code. The original contractor failed to step up and complete repairs, so the board voted in June to have their on-call mechanic handle the issues.
On Monday night, board members felt comfortable enough with their current state that they decided to shift to quarterly meetings instead of monthly.
Obviously, the situation could change. But for now it’s good to see this board functioning effectively for the rural Portland and rural Dunkirk residents it serves.
There weren’t many who were clamoring to be part of a board that had the unpopular job of administering a project mandated by the state. So those who stuck with it and those who stepped up deserve our thanks. —R.C.
The key words in that sentence — used to be.
In the last 11 months, that situation has seen consistent improvement.
Last summer, confusion engulfed the board.
•The board president resigned in August.
•A series of meetings went by with the group unable to get enough members to show up to have a quorum, meaning it couldn’t conduct any meaningful business.
•No one involved, including the board attorney, was even sure how many members were supposed to be serving (making the question of a quorum even more confusing).
•An effort to raise sewer rates failed despite board approval because the group did not follow through by sending written notice to affected residents.
But the situation began to turn in late October after Jay County Commissioners appointed one of their own, Faron Parr. He joined other new members Phil Ford and Randy Mann, to bring the board to full membership.
At its first meeting back at full strength, the board debated the sewer increase it had tried to enact months earlier, eventually voting it down 4-3. And while rates have continued to be part of their conversation, members haven’t let that topic bog them down.
They’ve also worked to try to solve some of the other problems residents have had since sewers were installed.
After being delayed for months by the harsh winter weather, inspections in May found electrical connections were not installed according to code. The original contractor failed to step up and complete repairs, so the board voted in June to have their on-call mechanic handle the issues.
On Monday night, board members felt comfortable enough with their current state that they decided to shift to quarterly meetings instead of monthly.
Obviously, the situation could change. But for now it’s good to see this board functioning effectively for the rural Portland and rural Dunkirk residents it serves.
There weren’t many who were clamoring to be part of a board that had the unpopular job of administering a project mandated by the state. So those who stuck with it and those who stepped up deserve our thanks. —R.C.
Top Stories
9/11 NEVER FORGET Mobile Exhibit
Chartwells marketing
September 17, 2024 7:36 a.m.
Events
250 X 250 AD