Author: admin

Location: Deborah Rawson Memorial Library meeting room.

Attendees: Brian Stevens, Drew Bulfer, Charlie Windisch

1. Minutes of the April 2026 meeting were approved.
2. Late payments: Too many households are delinquent in paying their water bills! Two still not have paid the 1^st and 2^nd quarter bills; an additional six still owe for quarter two (was due 1 April). JDF1 is a municipality and there are bills to be paid (electric, SOS, bond payments). If you are experiencing difficulties is making a payment, please reach out to Marilyn Marshall to arrange/discuss options.
3. Brian stated he had made the annual payment ($21K) on the larger bond we owe. There are a few years left on this but once paid off we should be able to build our reserves and be more pro-active in dealing with infrastructure issues.
4. Reservoir pumps: We have the new pump in place; trying to determine whether the second pump (noisy) needs attention. Drew trying (unsuccessfully) to reach the Peak Pump representative.
5. Valve replacements: Expecting to hear back from Chris King as to when this will start (hopefully within the next few weeks).

Next meeting: June 16th.

Meeting concluded at 7:47pm

Location: Deborah Rawson Memorial Library meeting room

Attendees: Kevin Trout, Jeffrey Earl, Charlie Windisch

Meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm

1. Minutes from the March meeting were approved.
2. Bill payment status: As of the meeting time, 3 households still have not paid the 1 Qtr bill (was due January 1st!). Marilyn Marshall to send out late notices. Continuing to ignore payment can lead to the water being shut off to the house!
3. No financial report – Brian is on vacation.
4. Equipment identification effort – key pieces of equipment to be labeled for future easy reference.
5. Rosemount chlorine sensor is working and feeding information to the Mission Control system.
6. Reservoir pumps: The new pump has been installed and is working. The second pump (the two pumps alternate) will be inspected to insure it is working properly.
7. Valve replacement effort: Chris King expects to start work replacing 8 defective valves in approximately 3 weeks. The committee will be given a one week’s notice so all affected parties can be notified. The cost of this effort will be paid via the Vermont Bond Bank grant that we received earlier this year.
8. Culligan site visit and annual contract for the greensand filter is still being negotiated by the committee.

The meeting concluded at 7:45pm

Next meeting will be Tuesday, May 19, 2026.

Location: Deborah Rawson Memorial Library meeting room
Attendees: Kevin Trout Drew Bulfer, Brian Stevens, Fred Lavenburg.

The meeting was called to order at 7:05pm

1. Electric Bill: The electric heating costs have lowered to normal range after the filter house thermostat was repaired.
2. Rate Increases: Q3 and Q4 rates set at $287.50 to compensate for missed Q2 increase. The rate for Q3 and Q4 will cover the missed Q2 revenue.
3. Equipment Identification: Committee plan sto have installation dates, equipment names, etc. marked on all equipment. This will reduce confusion about pump numbers and replacement timing. ryan should implement this practice going forward
4. Rosemount Chlorine Sensor: Existing inline chlorine sensor in upper house needs inspection. Post meeting follow up indicated the sensor display is working. SOS is scheduling a site visit with a Mission Control technical service contractor to see how it can be connected to mission to report real-time chlorine residual levels, helpful to keep manganese out of water.
5. Valve Replacement Schedule: Chris King contacted last week, project back on schedule after winter. Bond bank paperwork in progress for $24,000 funding. Committee will develop a coordination plan for the replacement work. Chris estimates one day per valve area, not full days
6. Digital Chlorine Tester: Initially discussed after Rural Water visit. Rosemont sensor replacement would eliminate need for separate digital tester. SOS should handle chlorine testing with their existing equipment, we don’t need another expensive piece of equipment if the Rosemount begins reporting again.
7. Pump 2 Issues: Pump #2 running loud, potentially wearing out after 4 months of continuous operation. Pump #1 recently replaced and now operational. Need backup pump inventory.
8. System Documentation: Google Drive established for all water system documents. Contains: water tests, system drawings, equipment manuals, contractor information. Gmail account required for access. Moving all project logs and processes to shared drive
9. Sanitary Survey Reporting
   • State sanitary survey completed – everything passed inspection, a few items need to be followed up on due to snow on the ground and in-progress replacement of pump #1.
   • State noted our storage tanks and pressure tanks are in excellent condition
   • Past Monthly reporting delinquencies are resolved with state.
   • State recommends we schedule a cybersecurity audit with a state rep to determine if any protection is needed. Kevin reports previous check-in with Mission Control and confirms there is no vulnerability with that system.
   • Committee will contact Culligan to schedule a site visit and annual maintenance plan.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:10.

Location: Deborah Rawson Memorial Library meeting room

Attendees: Jeff Earl, Drew Bulfer, Brian Stevens, Charlie Windisch

The meeting was called to order at 7:07pm

1. The minutes from the January meeting were approved.
2. Bill payment status: Marilynn Marshall reported (via email) that 7 households are currently delinquent in paying the first quarter 2026 bill (was due January 1) and one household still has not paid the 4^th quarter 2025 bill. Please note that non-payment can lead to the water being shut off. We are essentially another utility, akin to Green Mountain Power or Vermont Gas. Please take paying your bill seriously.
3. Financial discussion: The quarterly rate for the remainder of the year (quarters 2,3 and 4) will be $275. This represents a $25 per quarter increase. We are faced with rising costs for materials, parts and labor, and are taking this action to maintain a stable financial position.
4. The thermostat in the lower pump house needed replacing. Patterson Fuels (Chris Laskowski) was able to take care of this promptly for us.
5. On February 6^th    the Vermont Rural Drinking Water Association conducted a free audit of the lower pump house. A number of action items resulted (which we have shared with SOS), including cleaning the chlorine injection pipes, outdated chlorine and sediment in the chlorine tanks. The Association will be back in a few weeks to review progress made and to audit the upper reservoir house.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:49. 

The next meeting will be March 17.

Attendees: Jeffrey Earl, Kevin Trout, Fred Lavenberg, Brian Stevens, Drew Bulfer, Ann Kroll Lerner, Charlie Windisch

Location: Deborah Rawson Memorial Library meeting room.

Meeting was called to order at 7:05pm.

1. Bill payment status: As of the meeting time, 1 household still has not paid the 4^th quarter 2025 bill; 13 are delinquent in paying the first quarter 2026 bill. The committee requests that payments be made on time, as we have our own bills to pay!
2. Time was spent discussing the rates for the remaining quarters in 2026, and ways to address a $22K shortfall. More information to follow.
3. Failed December test for high manganese – follow up required with SOS regarding retest and corrective action.
4. Reservoir pump replacement – Committee voted in December to buy a new pressurization pump for the reservoir. The pump is ready to be picked up. Drew volunteered to get the pump and save JFD1 from paying shipping costs (thank you, Drew!)
5. Lead testing: One household sample tested high for lead levels in the fall of last year. JFD1 and SOS working with the state to determine a corrosion control treatment strategy.
6. Rural drinking water review of our filtration system to take place Friday, Jan 30th.
7. Papers to close the Community Bank line of credit were signed. The line of credit is intended to be tapped only in case of an emergency.

Next meeting: Tuesday, February 17th.

Attendees: Brian Stevens, Fred Lavenberg, Drew Bulfer, Kevin Trout, Charlie Windisch

Location: Deborah Rawson Memorial Library meeting room

Meeting was called to order at 7:05pm

1. Minutes from the October 2025 meeting were approved.
2. Bill payment status: Marilyn Marshall (via email) reports that 6 households still have not paid the 4^th quarter bills that were due October 1st. This represents close to 10% of the Foothills households that are delinquent! Water should be considered a utility – just like Green Mountain Power or Vermont Gas Systems. No one would be 7 weeks delinquent in paying those bills. Please try to pay on time!
3. Financial report: Revenue has come in as expected. However, we are about $15K above budget for repairs. Brian has secured a line of credit with the Community Bank in the amount of $25K in case we need additional dollars for the coming year. This line of credit was unanimously approved by the committee.
4. Lead testing: One household that showed high levels of level in their water in a September test has skewed the overall results (the other 4 were well below any level for concern). The water for this sample was collected from a tap that was not used very often, and the water had been sitting in the pipes for an unknown amount of time. As such we are subject to additional testing (which SOS is handling).
5. Manganese – The high levels have been corrected, and we are back to normal. 
6. Valve replacements – With the snow and colder weather here, the valve replacement effort will be put off until the springtime of next year.
7. Lindenwood paving: Project complete.
8. Reservoir pumps: Currently only one of two pressure pumps is functioning. Awaiting parts to repair the second pump. The meeting was adjourned at 8:10pm. Next meeting: Tuesday, December 16th, 7pm.

Attendees: Kevin Trout, Fred Lavenberg, Drew Bulfer, Jeff Earl, Charlie Windisch

Location: Deborah Rawson Memorial Library meeting room.

Meeting was called to order at 7pm.

1. Bill payment status: Marilyn Marshall reported (via earlier email that 7 households have not paid the 4^th quarter bill (was due October 1). Reminders to be sent out.
2. Water bill payment slips for 2026: Two bill payment notices will be sent out next year.  The first will contain two slips for the 1^st and 2^nd quarters: at a later point, another mailing will be sent with the 3^rd and 4^th quarter payment slips.
3. Lead in the water: The Prudential Committee was notified that there were high levels of lead in one of the samples taken.  These samples (one liter each) were taken from five different homes. Four of the samples were fine. An alert (per State requirements) was sent out via Vermont Alerts to the neighborhood. The Committee is working with the homeowner, the State and SOS to try to figure out what is going on.
4. High levels of manganese – The recent routine sample taken by SOS at the well head tested higher than allowed for manganese content. This triggered another alert to the neighborhood. The committee is engaged with SOS to figure out why. Possibilities include incorrect chlorine injection pre-filter and incorrect filter backwashing.
5. Lindenwood paving was supposed to start this week. The schedule was possibly disrupted by the recent rainy weather.
6. The go ahead was to be given to Chris King (excavating) to remove and replace eight stuck/nonfunctional curb stop valves.
7. Brian Stevens was given the okay by the committee to start talks about opening a line of credit with Community Bank. This would serve as a backup in case our reserves dip too low as a result of the ongoing projects.
8. Joining Vermont Rural Water Association: The committee recommended it and requested Brian to join.

Attendees: Brian Stevens, Drew Bulfer, Kevin Trout, Charlie Windisch

Location: Deborah Rawson Library meeting room.

Meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm.

1. Minutes from the August meeting were approved.
2. Bill Payment Status: Two households have still not paid the 3^rd quarter bill which was due 1 July. Late notices to be mailed. Please note 4^th quarter bills are due 1 October. Bills have been sent out previously – there will not be another mailing for this quarter. Please pay on time!
3. One of the pumps in the reservoir is not working. The float valve in the pump needs to be replaced, which we expect to happen next week.
4. Lindenwood paving – a section of the road (where the leak occurred last February) needs repaving. Chris King has been given the go-ahead to start these repairs.
5. Valve replacements: Eight curb stop valves have been flagged for replacement. The committee has received one bid and is awaiting another for this work.
6. Joining the Vermont Rural Water Association – The committee agreed to join this organization. The cost is roughly $200 per year. It was felt this was worthwhile in that we would be able to learn from other water systems and share approaches to common problems. Cybersecurity has become a concern and the committee is looking into the security of our system. VT Rural Water Association would be a good resource here.

Attendees: Drew Bulfer, Kevin Trout, Fred Lavenberg, Charlie Windisch
Location: Deborah Rawson library meeting room.

Meeting was called to order at 7:05pm

1. The minutes from the July meeting were approved.
2. Bill payment status: Marilyn Marshall reported (via email) that three house holds still have not paid the 3rd quarter bill. Late notices to be sent out.
3. Pump house: Everything seems in working order there. The dehumidifier is on. There was a question as to whether the pump from the holding tank to the leach field had been replaced. Kevin to follow up with Lance (SOS).
4. The committee has decided to put a lock on the access gate leading to the pump house, due to unauthorized cars entering the property. Walk-ins are fine, but no vehicles should be entering. Parking outside the gate to the side is okay.
5. Valve replacement – The committee received one very high estimate to replace eight “sticky” curb stop valves. We will pursue estimates from other excavators in the area.
6. Financials – Brian was unable to make the meeting, but did send the updated spreadsheets for the committee to peruse. We did not find anything of significance and will wait until next month for a more extensive discussion.
7. Junk removal around the pump house – nothing new to report. We will take this up again next month.
8. Vermont Alerts – At the end of the meeting, Drew sent out a “TEST” VT alert notice. The aim is to alert the neighborhood as quickly as possible if a boil water notice, for example, is necessary. We discovered some issues with the text messaging (message was clipped) that needs some work. (Note: If you would like to opt in please send an email to Drew with your email/cell phone information if you haven’t already done so).

The meeting adjourned at 8:08pm.