OSWEGO, NY – On Tuesday night, the Common Council will take another look at a resolution regarding accepting sewage from the college.
At last week’s Physical Services Committee meeting, Mayor Randy Bateman requested discussion of a resolution that was tabled at the May 12 council meeting.
The resolution would have clarified that Resolution No. 81-b of 2008 doesn’t include sewage the city receives from SUNY Oswego and that the city will accept all sewage from the college into the city’s sewage treatment plant.
In February, the council voted to not accept any additional sewage from Oswego Town, unless it came from a single-family home. The resolution also noted that no single-family home in the town could be tied into the city sewer lines without council permission.
The resolution was vetoed by the mayor; the council overrode his veto, however.
The council voted 6-1 May 12 to table the resolution to clarify the previous resolution until they received more information.
Committee members said they were satisfied with information they received from the college and they recommended sending the resolution back to the full council for consideration.
SUNY Oswego, which is located in Oswego Town, is commencing a project to construct new dormitories/apartments on its campus. It had requested a clarification that the resolution doesn’t include sewage received by the city from the college.
The city accepts sewage from SUNY Oswego pursuant to sewer use agreements, which have been separate and distinct from the city’s sewer use agreements with the town.
The college wants to get started on its new housing project to be able to meet the scheduled 2010 completion date.
Part of the problem is that the city experiences sewage overflows during some wet weather conditions and is working with the DEC to correct h the problem.
According to Mayor Bateman, the college wishes to continue to be a good neighbor to the city and has agreed, in concept, to assist the city in the amortization of the capital costs of required improvements to the city’s sewage treatment plant.
The mayor noted that the overflow wastewater is partially treated.
“It doesn’t go through the full treatment process,” he explained. “When the water goes out to the lake it’s not fully treated, just partially treated.
Councilor Mike Joyce (R-Seventh Ward) said he’d been trying to contact a DEC engineer for more information.
Joyce said he’d try to schedule a workshop, either June 9 or 16, with the DEC so the councilors could ask questions.
Councilor Sue Sweet (R-Third Ward) noted the college’s project would allow students already living in other campus housing to move into the newer facility.
Therefore, it could mean not even as much capacity to be handled by the city’s plant “because if we’re spreading out students already on campus that would mean essentially about the same amount (of sewage),” she explained.
Representatives form the DEC have agreed to come to Oswego on June 9 to explain what is expected from the DEC and EPA for the city’s westside wastewater treatment plant, Joyce said.
However, the mayor will be out of town, so Joyce is waiting to hear from the DEC is they’d be able to come the following week.
Sweet added that she felt comfortable with the resolution.
“This is different from the Town of Oswego, this is not an open ended construction situation. It is actually a one project that we are looking at,” she said referring to the college project.”
An open ended construction, as is possible in Oswego Town, would mean a constant increase in the amount of sewage that the city would be dealing with, she said.
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