Corrales looks at new sewer ordinance

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Corrales new Mayor Scott Kominiak has spent the months since his March election studying ways to make the cost of connecting to the controversial village sewer system more affordable for residents.

Kominiak and village staffers will present cost data and a proposed new sewer ordinance to the village council at a workshop at 2 p.m. on Thursday in the Council Chambers at 4322 Corrales Road. Public comment will be allowed.

Corrales currently has no sewer system and residents depend on septic systems. A liquids-only wastewater line from Wagners Lane south to the village limits at Cabezon was completed around 18 months ago but it is still not operational.

Kominiak said his plan is to shift the responsibility for installing the connection from the village to the individual property owner. Based on his research, allowing private property owners to install the connection infrastructure from their septic tank to the main sewer line would cost significantly less than if the village has to do the installation.

During the first several weeks since taking office, we examined all of the operational and legal aspects of the system, Kominiak said in an email. Our conclusion was that the village is committed to move forward with putting the system into service, but that we need to find a more sensible, practical way to do so.

Kominiak said the village would still provide pumps and filters and financial incentives for those who want to connect. His plan could reduce the cost of connection to between $3,000 and $9,000, depending on how much work has to be done.

In May last year, Councilors approved an ordinance establishing guidelines for connecting to the system but there were ongoing cost concerns. Souder Miller, the company that engineered the project, estimated the hookup cost at between $11,500 and $13,500 a price that some councilors said was too burdensome for residents.

The ordinance did not make it mandatory to connect, a situation that former Mayor Phil Gasteyer said put the village at risk of losing funding it received from the state Environment Department for the sewer project.

Councilors later approved using money from a gross receipts tax increase that took effect in January to pay off the $540,000 Environment Department loan. Village Administrator John Avila said the loan was paid off in March.

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Corrales looks at new sewer ordinance