Lake Santeetlah – Water was the recurring subject at the Town of Lake Santeetlah town council’s first in-person meeting since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two board members were absent from the Sept. 8 meeting – Diana Simon and Jim Hager. Only a half-dozen citizens were seated in the audience at the Town Hall meeting. Four officials from Graham County were also present to brief the town council about the ongoing revaluation of properties in the county.
But it was water that dominated the conversation.
Dr. Julie Claveria – who lives at the top of Thunderbird Mountain – complained about water service to her house and those of her neighbors. Water pressure at her elevation is poor to begin with, she said, but when power goes out – which it often does – she gets no water at all.
The problem is that her home and others in her neighborhood are at about the same elevation as the town’s two water tanks. There are pumps that supply their homes with water – but when the power goes out, so does her water.
Only those who live at lower elevations continue to get water, because those pipes are gravity-fed – at least until the water tanks run dry.
“We all pay the same amount,” she told the council. “We should be able to get water, too.”
Calveria has lived in the town for about three years and said the power went out 12 times during her first year alone. One time, power was out for three days.
She said she had been asking for help from the previous board, without success.
Scott Kamps of the town’s public works said he has been researching ways to improve reliability and service. The water tanks – which store 130,000 gallons between them – move between 5,000-30,000 gallons of water a week, depending on the season. The pumps require a large-capacity generator, he said. It will be a slow process for a town that doesn’t have a lot of extra money for major infrastructure acquisitions.
Jack Gross, whose wife is Mayor Connie Gross, said there was just one house at the top of the mountain when the system was installed.
“Water is complicated and we have so little money in the water fund,” said council member Tina Emerson, who is also the town’s finance director.
Part of the problem is that the water fund is an enterprise fund that is supposed to be independent from the town’s general fund. Moving funds from the general fund to an enterprise fund is generally frowned upon and could hurt the town’s credit rating.
“We haven’t forgotten about you,” Emerson said.
Mayor Gross said the town has to return to basics like water service.
“It’s not a yes or no answer,” she said. “There are a lot of aspects we’re trying to work our way through.”
In other water-related matters, the council discussed a recent and unusual flurry of late water payments and the continuing puzzle about where the town’s water lines are located.
The town sends out water bills each quarter and some property owners simply forget to pay their bills. Normally, town staff sends out reminders, but with fewer staff resources, those reminders have not gone out.
A new billing system is being installed and will allow residents to pay their bills online.
The town is negotiating with a device recently acquired by the Town of Robbinsville to detect water lines and water line leaks.
If a map of water lines exists, it predates the incorporation of the Town of Lake Santeetlah and no one knows where it is. Mayor Gross has priced the water line detection equipment at $15,000 – $34,000 and reached out to the Robbinsville Board of Aldermen about renting its equipment.
The Town of Lake Santeetlah would only need the equipment for a month or so to map the entire water system. Robbinsville aldermen are looking at how such a rental agreement would work.
Library agreement
The council voted to renew its agreement with Nantahala Regional Library, which includes the Graham County Public Library in Robbinsville – as well as three other libraries and a bookmobile in the region. The town had budgeted $1,200 for its participation but had to sign the agreement by month’s end.
The problem was whether Mayor Gross, who sits on the regional library board, has a conflict of interest because of that seat. But with just three council members present, there wouldn’t be a quorum were Gross to recuse herself. The council advised her to vote and the continuing agreement was approved 3-0.