The Stearns County District Court approved the construction of the controversial Clearwater Harbor Centralized Sewer System at a Monday, June 14, trial, and now two public meetings are planned to inform residents how the judge has changed their assessments. “We’ll have a final assessment for each residence at the meeting,” Clearwater River Watershed District (CRWD) administrator Merle Anderson said at the CRWD regular meeting Wednesday, July 14. An informational meeting was held Wednesday, July 21, at the Annandale Middle School. At the meeting, watershed legal representatives explained the judge’s assessment changes and how residents would be affected. Anderson said the judge and legal counsel for the CRWD were discussing the changed assessment particulars prior to the meeting. He added that sheets comparing the board’s originally proposed assessments and the new assessments decided by the court would be prepared by July 21. “The reason for this is: It’s important to show what was the board’s decision and what is the court’s decision and it will be different for everybody,” Anderson said. “We want to let the people decide if the appeal was worth it.” Original watershed estimates put the household hookup costs at $17,766 for homes in Clearwater Harbor, and $19,824 for Beachwood Road homes. These costs have all changed. On Wednesday, July 28, residents will be able to express their thoughts and concerns about the $1.5 million, 82-unit, centralized sewer system proposed by the CRWD at a public hearing. The bid for the project could then be formally accepted and construction could begin soon. Residents have been in limbo since a lawsuit was filed in the fall of 2002 when about 20 homeowners in the area said they did not want to be included in the project. The Beachwood Road cost was more because property owners there are getting a new paved road. The cost for each home would be spread out over a 20-year period. Also, there would be a $17 to $20 monthly fee per household to maintain the system. The sewer system was proposed because many homes in this area have failing or non-conforming septic systems. The area is densely populated, many homes are landlocked and do not have enough property to have their own septic drainfields. Some of the systems are leeching and polluting Clearwater Lake, Grass Lake and the Clearwater River. Newer state septic laws make it impossible for the homeowners to update their sewage systems, and a centralized system seemed like a viable solution to CRWD managers. The sewer project would have 82 hookups, including 60 from Clearwater Harbor homes on the west side of Grass Lake and the rest from Beachwood Road, west of Highway 144. The project calls for installing a gravity sewer system which will be hooked up to all 82 homes. The sewer lines will flow into three separate lift stations, which will pump the sewage through force mains to three large septic tanks and to a recirculating sand filter and pressurized drain field. CRWD managers accept audit CRWD managers accepted the 2003 audit at their Wednesday, June 9, board meeting. The auditor found no problems with the watershed’s books. “We found no material errors with the data,” said district auditor Jeffrey Burkhardt. “There were no areas of non-compliances with the five areas of compliance for state statutes. This is what you want to hear.” In 2003, the watershed had total expenditures totaling $353,300. Total revenues for the year were $370,680, which is a $17,380 gain. This brings the district’s bank account to $317,958.
