Follow-up Utilities Committee meeting scheduled for February 3

By Alec Keller

The Ada Council held a regular meeting on Tuesday, January 20 with all members present and Mayor Dave Retterer presiding. No pending legislation or ordinances were on the agenda for the evening. The full meeting packet is HERE.

WATER EMERGENCY
Village resident Anita Stephenson was invited to address Council to express her concerns in the wake of the drinking water issue in which lime was overfed at the village’s water treatment plant on Friday, January 16.

Stephenson questioned why she was not notified sooner after the issue was discovered. 

Village Administrator Amanda Sears responded by outlining the timeline of events surrounding the incident. Sears said the water office received two phone calls on Friday afternoon reporting that the water looked discolored and cloudy, which she said is not uncommon in the wintertime. 

Later in the day, about 6:45 p.m., the water superintendent received numerous calls, which led to Sears notifying the state Environmental Protection Agency immediately. The EPA told her they hadn’t heard of such things and recommended that the village flush the hydrants. Sears added that no notification was required at the time. 

At 8:43 p.m., the EPA called Sears back with the recommendation of issuing a “Do Not Drink” order while village employees worked on flushing the high pH water out of the distribution system.

 The order was then lifted around 6:00 a.m. on Saturday. She extended apologies to Stephenson that she did not receive a notification sooner, and council member Xander Wells requested that a Utilities Committee Meeting be held on February 3, following the regular council meeting, to discuss the incident in-depth and to develop a contingency plan and countermeasures moving forward.

(Additional water information is in the Administrator's report below.)

BACKFLOW PREVENTION
Council passed a Backflow Prevention Agreement with Hydrocorp, a company based in Troy, Michigan to inspect non-residential water connections within a 72 month period. More details regarding the contract can be found on page 11 of the meeting packet.

FIRST TEST OF EMERGENCY SIRENS
Police Chief Alec Cooper reported that the new tornado sirens would be tested for the first time on Wednesday, January 21. A release from the Ada Police Department on Facebook said that residents can expect to hear these tests every Wednesday between 11 a.m. and noon unless there is a risk of actual severe weather.

NEW BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS MEMBERS
Council approved the following new Board of Zoning members: Amber Simon for a 3-year term, Bob Kipker for a 2-year term, Arctic Buxton for a 1-year term, and alternate Peg Gordon as a volunteer for the Board of Zoning Appeals and the Planning Commission.

ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT
Sears told Council that temporary countermeasures have been put in place in response to the water situation that took place over the holiday weekend. She mentioned that while the EPA requires at least one lab check during the day, there will now be a second lab check at the water treatment plant in the evening going forward. 

She added that they are working towards upgrades to the lime silos to more accurately measure the lime using digital readers. 

She assured that any bills that are coming for water usage in the month of January are not associated with the flushing, as readings took place before the event. Sears mentioned that the most recent bill going out will include information on how to sign up for village and police department notifications.

Residents can go to adaoh.gov and click on “Receive Updates,” to receive Village of Ada updates (public notices, water advisories, bids, projects, meetings). Go to adapd.org for Ada Police Department public safety alerts.