On August 14, New Berlin’s Utility Committee unanimously approved the water agreement with the City of Milwaukee. See JS report.
I reckon that displeases unsuccessful NB aldermanic candidate JJ Blonien.
His vehement opposition to the water agreement and attack against our mayor had been popping up all over NOW.
Blonien’s rant was posted online in NOW’s Your Stories (Aug.1) and Community Voices (Aug. 4) sections and published in the Aug. 7 New Berlin-Muskego NOW newspaper (Best of Blogs).
And that wasn't all. NOW added a “forum” about the water agreement to its web page. The "forum" provided just two highlighted links: one to a reporter’s article, the other to Blonien’s blog deriding the mayor and water deal. The "forum" posed the question "What do you think of the deal?" (So far, only two individuals have posted comments to it)
The interactive “forum” NOW created did not include a link to the Your Stories July 31 blog item by Tiffany Wankowski that was supportive of the water deal. With the author's permission, I am posting it here.
New Berlin Residents to Receive Safe, Healthy Water Through Agreement with City of Milwaukee
By Tiffany Wankowski
NewBerlinNOW.com user
Posted: July 31, 2008
20-year water-sharing deal resolves New Berlin's radium problem while complying with Great Lakes Water Resources Compact
NEW BERLIN, Wis. - New Berlin Mayor Jack Chiovatero today praised separate water-sharing and regional benefit agreements approved by the Milwaukee Common Council, saying the agreements will provide safe and healthy water for New Berlin residents while demonstrating regional cooperation on important issues. The New Berlin Common Council is scheduled to vote on the agreements in the next several days.
"The water-sharing agreement is a major health and safety victory for the City of New Berlin," Chiovatero said. "After being ordered by the state Department of Natural Resources to resolve the threat posed by radium-contaminated wells in the central third of New Berlin or face substantial fines, our engineers researched a number of alternatives. Repairing the system would cost many millions of dollars, and purchasing water from Racine or Oak Creek would not be cost-effective at this time. The agreement with the City of Milwaukee is the best combination of cost and providing New Berlin citizens with the safest, healthiest water available."
The City of New Berlin has purchased Lake Michigan water from Milwaukee to serve the community's eastern third since 2005. The new agreement expands the service area to also provide Lake Michigan water to New Berlin's central third. The agreement will be in effect for 20 years, with water supplied through existing New Berlin water mains and pumping stations. New Berlin's western third, largely undeveloped land that is not served by City water or sewer systems, is not part of the plan, will not receive Lake Michigan water and will retain its rural character.
A second, separate agreement calls for the City of New Berlin to make a one-time, $1.5 million regional benefits payment to the City of Milwaukee. Chiovatero said the payment recognizes that important issues extend beyond community borders and shows regional support for Milwaukee's efforts to address shared Milwaukee-New Berlin concerns such as transportation, job creation and other issues. The New Berlin Water Utility will fund the full cost of the one-time payment, and tax dollars will not be used, Chiovatero said.
"Our joint and successful efforts such as passage of the Great Lakes Compact and the water talks between our two cities show the good that can come from suburban and urban leaders finding ways to work cooperatively," he said. "The City of New Berlin looks forward to finalizing these agreements with the City of Milwaukee and to future positive partnerships."
The water agreement adds Lake Michigan water service to approximately 3,930 New Berlin customers, as well as approximately 400 new homes projected to be built in the approved service area over the next 20 years. New Berlin will pay Milwaukee a rate determined by the Wisconsin Public Service Commission, which regulates the state's utilities. The current average rate is $1.12 per 1,000 gallons, and the City of Milwaukee could see over $40 million in revenue because of the deal. The agreement sets a peak rate of pumpage from Milwaukee at 6.5 million gallons a day. (For comparison purposes, average 2007 water demand for the entire City of New Berlin was 3.184 million gallons per day.)
The New Berlin-Milwaukee agreement fully complies with the Great Lakes Water Resources Compact, which Gov. Doyle signed in May. The Compact allows Lake Michigan water to be temporarily diverted outside the Great Lakes Basin to serve communities like New Berlin that straddle the basin dividing line, provided the water goes back into the lakes. Because eastern and central New Berlin are served by existing Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District sewers, all water going to New Berlin will be returned to Lake Michigan.
"This is a good agreement
