Shelby village to consider water agreement with township

Shelby village to consider water agreement with township

SHELBY — The Shelby Village Council is holding a special meeting Monday, April 3, at 6:30 p.m. in the Shelby High School library to vote on a wholesale water agreement with Shelby Township to provide water for Oceana Acres apartments developed by Peterson Farms.

“After several years of discussion and consideration, the proposed water main extension to Oceana Acres has received the necessary funding to proceed, contingent on approval of a wholesale water agreement between the Village of Shelby and Shelby Township,” writes Shelby Village Administrator Brady Selner in material provided for the meeting. “Direction received from the July 12, 2021, village council meeting was used as the guide to develop the draft agreement. The water and sanitation committee met to discuss the agreement on three different occasions, and village council discussed the agreement on March 13, 2023.

“The village council wanted to seek public input from the community before acting. In summary, the agreement provides the parameters for the Village of Shelby to supply water to Shelby Township on a wholesale basis. Shelby Township will be responsible for construction, operation, maintenance, and future replacement of the water main. The township has indicated they would look to contract with the Village of Shelby DPW to operate and maintain the water main on a contractual basis. The parameters of that relationship would need to be spelled out in an additional agreement. Alternatively, Shelby Township would hire a different third-party to meet the necessary operating requirements for a municipal water system.”

Additional information provided by the village:

Which municipality will own the new water main? Shelby Township will own the new water main and be completely responsible for the construction, operation, maintenance, future replacement, and billing of end user customers. Shelby Township will be responsible to ensure all EGLE (Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy — formerly the Department of Environmental Quality) requirements are met for operating a water system.

Will the addition of Oceana Acres reduce the water capacity for Village residents? Although the technical answer is yes, it will virtually have no impact on the capacity of water for village residents. Under the draft agreement, the maximum amount of water Shelby Township could purchase is 1,111,040 gallons per month. If they purchased up to the maximum, it would increase the village’s firm capacity by 1.80 percent. Moving the existing firm capacity of 13.02 percent to 14.82 percent. Additional infrastructure would be needed once we approach 80 percent of our firm capacity.

Is there a risk of contamination due to the extension of water main? There is no additional risk of contamination with the addition of water main. A back flow preventer will be installed at the connection point. If pressure reaches a certain PSI in the township-owned water main, the back flow preventer would automatically close. The back flow preventer could also be closed for any other reason deemed necessary to prevent contamination with the Village of Shelby water supply.

How much will Shelby Township residents pay for water? Under the draft agreement, the village will charge the township 1.25x the commodity rate for water charged to village residents. It is up to Shelby Township to determine how much it will charge its customers.

Will others be allowed to connect to the water main after construction? Under the draft Wholesale Water Agreement, others are permitted to connect to the water main, but only after village council approval. No matter the additional users, the township is subject to the 1,111,040 gallons per month maximum.

How will this affect me as a village resident? As a village resident, you will not notice a difference in the water supply or the service provided. Under the draft Wholesale Water Agreement, Shelby Township is responsible for the operation. If an agreement is considered to contract with the Village of Shelby DPW to provide this operational service to the township water system, special attention be needed to ensure customer service for village residents is not diminished.

How is the water main being paid for? The water main is being funded through a Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) grant, a Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) grant, and a financial contribution from EGLE. The project is 100 percent funded through state and federal dollars.

The resolution to be voted on at Monday’s meeting includes two options: (1) to authorize Village Administrator Selner and Village Council President Paul Inglis to sign the agreement or (2) to postpone a decision.

The meeting will also focus on discussing the Shelby Acres Development Agreement, an 82-acre residential development.

“The Village of Shelby has been working with Richard Raffaelli (Peterson Farms chief operating officer and Shelby Township supervisor), who is working on behalf of Shelby Acres Development, LLC, on a development agreement for an 82-unit residential development. The Memorandum of Understanding presents both parties with expectations of how the process will proceed. This document was approved by village council at its March 13, 2023, meeting. In addition to the 82-unit development, the village would annex, and provide village services to the property with the two, recently built, Peterson Farms apartment buildings. The village continues to work with Shelby Acres Development, LLC to get a complete PUD (planned unit development) application for consideration by the planning commission. Following planning commission consideration, it will be forwarded to the village council for a final decision. If the PUD is approved, village council would then approve the annexation of the 59 acres followed by approving the development agreement.”