Yanceyville hears water and wastewater updates and opens hearing on system development fees

The Yanceyville Town Council on May 7 received operations updates for the town’s water and wastewater plants and held a public hearing on proposed water and sewer system development fees.

Matthew Malone, regional manager for Inframark, reported no regulatory violations for the water plant and wastewater plant and listed recent maintenance: repair of a clearwell level indicator on April 17, repair to High Service Pump #1 on April 24 with assistance from Danville maintenance, removal of excess solids from an SBR basin and replacement of a mixer and aerator. A new composite sampler arrived April 25 and was installed May 1. Malone said raw-water turbidity has normalized and chemical demand has been reduced.

Town engineer Franz Holt summarized the statutory background for system development fees, including the 2017 SDF Act (House Bill 436, an amendment to Chapter 162A adding Article 8) and the town’s retention of Stantec Consulting Services, Inc., to prepare a system development fee study. Holt said the study was posted for at least 45 days on the town website and that Town Manager Kamara Barnett had not received public comments.

Council members did not adopt fees at the meeting; they took the analysis under advisement so council can later decide where to set the water and sewer system development fees.

Why it matters: System development fees help recover infrastructure costs from new development; deciding fee levels affects development costs and utility planning.

What’s next: Council will review the Stantec study and set fee levels at a later meeting.