An ad hoc committee set up to address the problem of raw sewage running into the Connecticut River — which cost Holyoke federal oversight and a multi-million dollar fine — requested from the City Council $250,000 to pay a law firm ($50,000) and engineering firm ($200,000) to help city officials make the best decisions to fix the water and sewer system was the basis of a indepth-discussion.

“This is a $180 million, 20-year contract for the city,” said City Councilor Michael Sullivan, member of the ad hoc committee and contractor. “We’ve had a great team working on it. The current contract is expiring. What we what we would like to. And it has a year to go, but this is a very complicated, longterm and very important contract for the city and for the future.

“…what we’ve got is, a time frame here to get an RFP [Request for Proposal] out, and we need the, both the legal and the technical help to get together a contract that’s really going to be appropriate. the the contract that we’ve been working under for 20 years, to put it in very simple terms, was about flush your toilet, run your dishwasher, and the stuff goes off and hopefully it doesn’t go in the river.”

Mary Monhana, chair of the Board of Public Works, stated in a letter to the council:

“DPW and the Board of Public Works are aggressively seeking grant assistance to fund a comprehensive wastewater master plan for the plant and collection system. This plan will identify operations and applications at the facility that are feasible, cost effective, and provide the ratepayers and taxpayers a return on investment.

“These eWorts to improve operations, contain costs, and provide an overall benefit to the City and region are not fully realized within a five year term. My support of the Board of Public Works recommending to the Mayor that the City issue a new request for proposals for long term contract operations at Holyoke’s wastewater treatment plant is based on this being the option that bests serves the ratepayers and taxpayers of the City. It is not a reflection on the performance of Veolia, the current contractor. In fact, I look forward to seeing Veolia’s submission in response to the
RFP.”

The first session after summer vacation was marred by some councilors speaking under their breaths to complain and speaking out of turn or before being recognized the City Council President Tessa Murphy Romboletti, whose patience reached the boiling point after one- too many snarky remarks and interruptions.

“We’re done. Got it?” she said. “Everyone is capable of having a conversation with each other outside of council chambers. And I encourage you all, if you have someone in this room that you really don’t get along with and you really can’t find it in your heart to try and get along with each other, everyone just go pick up the phone and talk to each other. Honestly, we’re all here for the same reason. We all care about this city. I was really hoping that after a month off, we could all maybe, maybe try to get along for like, I don’t know, a couple hours. So with that, I’m going to keep moving forward on this agenda.”

View documents presented to City Councilors here.

View agenda here.

The Development & Government Relations Committee also met this week and among the item it took up was granting a special permit for the development of 84 residential units at 2 Open Square.

“This is basically a procedural part where city council special permit to allow residential use in the industrial zone,” said Aaron Vega, director of the city’s Office of Planning and Economic Development. “I will say that they are quite long in their plans. They’ve been working with our planning department for their site, the site planning review.”

The DGR committee also received the final report on parking in the city’s downtown. It, and other documents related to this meeting, can be reviewed here.

Agenda can be reviewed here.