WOLCOTT – Town voters once again approved moving forward with plans for a town wastewater treatment system with 312 votes in favor and 221 opposed.
The vote allows the town to continue work toward installing a municipal system for wastewater treatment identified as a priority action for 2018-2026 in the 2108 Wolcott Town Plan.
Wolcott’s Wastewater Committee Chair Jim Ryan has been on the committee since it was formed in 2020. He said he was “relieved” at how the vote turned out and appreciated the silent majority came out to vote for “the forward looking project.”
School district voters had already approved locating the wastewater disposal site at Wolcott Elementary School, the morning before the first town vote.
Work continued on the project’s planning and design even while arrangements were made for the second vote because some grant funds require the work to be completed by the end of 2026.
Prior to this last vote $4,765,000 in grants had been secured for the survey, design, permitting and construction of the system. That amount is expected to cover the system’s cost, plus an additional 30% contingency.
Ryan noted an additional $750,000 grant from the Northern Borders Regional Commission was announced after the September 10 vote, which further ensures the success of the project.
One million dollars in Congressionally Directed Spending has been requested by Vermont Senator Peter Welch. The town will be notified this fall if it is officially included in the FY25 congressional budget.
Select Board Chair Linda Martin said the wastewater committee will continue meeting and working with the engineers, consultants and the Lamoille County Planning Commission to move the project forward. She expects the committee will frequently inform the select board of its progress.
Ryan said surveying is being done for the path piping will take along School Street and Route 15 to the Town Forest, where it will run uphill to the elementary school athletic fields.
Landowner interviews are being conducted to identify where connections to each property will be made.
Hook-ups will be required for all private residences and commercial establishments along the route free through 2026 as part of construction, said Ryan. There will be an opt-out option for those with systems meeting current state requirements that include proximity to a well and soil type.
Planning is being coordinated with VTRANS where the pipe will cross the Lamoille River along a new School Street bridge replacement planned for next summer.
The committee is working closely with the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation to oversee permitting of the system.
Ryan said the committee is drafting a sewer ordinance and will recommend a board of sewer commissioners, which could be the town select board. Martin said the select board will need to approve both items.
The second vote came about as the result of a petition signed by 78 people, three more than had opposed the measure’s initial vote.
As the September 10 revote approached, both sides made their case on Facebook, Front Porch Forum, with yard signs and at a September 4 informational meeting. The discussion became heated at times, with even an accusation that signs were vandalized.
In the end, those against the measure almost tripled their original turnout, but it wasn’t enough to upset those in favor of the plan. Over 40% of the town’s registered voters turned out for the single-issue balloting.
Paul Fixx is editor of The Hardwick Gazette and lives in Hardwick.
