Jerusalem pays back sewer bills; meets with PY

An important and valuable step has been taken toward resolving the sewer conflicts between the village of Penn Yan and the town of Jerusalem. At a meeting between members of boards from both municipalities on Monday, Jerusalem Superintendent Daryl Jones handed over a check for $150,466.51 in settlement of a lawsuit and its appeal, which was decided in the village’s favor in mid January.

The check that Jones delivered covered sewer use fees plus interest due to late payments  from the town. The town had stopped paying the sewer bill in protest over the terms of the contract.
Jones, Councilman Ray Stewart, and Jerusalem Engineer Wayne Ackart came to the meeting with the entire membership of the Penn Yan Municipal Utilities Board and the Village Board. But some members of the Penn Yan boards were disappointed that three other members of the Jerusalem board were not in attendance.

Former Mayor Jerry Nissen, a member of the MUB, said he was appalled that not all the Jerusalem board members were present. “We wanted the entire Jerusalem Board here,” he said, expressing his concern about not having a quorum from Jerusalem.
Jerusalem Councilman Mike Folts explained he couldn’t attend because of a medical appointment, but in a phone conversation Tuesday morning he said he was glad to hear Jones turned over the check and that the groups have begun talking again.
Folts said he was glad to hear the meeting had been scheduled and that lines of communication have re-opened. “We’ve been trying to get that to happen for years,” he said.

MUB Chairman Rom French explained that Max Parson said he couldn’t attend the meeting because of scheduling conflicts. Neil Simmons, the other Jerusalem board member, had previously told Jones he couldn’t attend due to surgery he was scheduled to undergo last Friday.
After several minutes of back and forth about whether the meeting should continue without the three Jerusalem members, the consensus was to continue.

Representatives from the MUB had asked to attend last week’s Jerusalem Town Board meeting, but Jones said the agenda for that meeting was full, so he suggested the meeting on Monday. He presented the idea to his board at their Wednesday meeting.
He said in his discussion about the meeting with Penn Yan Trustee Robert Hoban, he understood it was important to meet as soon as possible.

But MUB member Dan Banach said, “The whole purpose was to get together and review the history. There is not going to be any negotiations. I hope that we do something today — that everything that’s said gets back to these people (Simmons, Folts and Parson). It just goes to show that this is what has been going on since day one.”

The last time representatives from the two entities officially talked was in November 2005, according to Jones.
French explained the reason Penn Yan officials wanted to hold the meeting was to offer an historic perspective on the sewer contracts.

According to French, the contracts between the two municipalities date back to 1966. That first contract laid out the formation of the first Keuka Park Sewer District. In an Oct. 5, 1967 memo, Attoney Robert Cole of Bath was noted as recommending that a ceiling of sewer use be set at 205,000 gallons. According to that contract, the town of Jerusalem would pay Penn Yan 150 percent of the fees paid by Penn Yan’s customers inside the village, up to the 205,000 gallon mark. If the town sent more than 205,000 gallons for treatment, new fees could be negotiated.

That contract also mandated a 2 percent interest fee per month for non-payment.
The contract was amended in 1970, 1975, 1995 and 2002. Along the way, the payment changed to a minimum disposal charge of $150,000. In 1995, the 150 percent of the village fee was adopted.

As the contract was discussed, more than one person talked about the complexities and possible interpretations of the agreement.

By the end of the meeting, there was consensus to continue meeting.
“I think this is a positive thing. We’ve got a long history together. We’ve started with dialogue. That’s the important thing,” said Ackart.