Page A2
Lake Oconee News
Friday, February 17,2017
GREENE COUNTY
Piedmont Water to build treatment plant, use Lake Oconee
Mark Engel
engel@lakeoconeenews.us
Delivering on a promise
made to customers in
November 2015, Piedmont
Water has announced that
a new $8 million surface
water treatment plant will
be built off Lake Oconee
Trail in southern Greene
County.
Residents of Reynolds
Lake Oconee, including
Reynolds Landing, as well
as surrounding commer
cial properties and Del
Webb community were sent
letters this week announc
ing the new facility, accord
ing to Adam Shaifer, pres
ident of Piedmont Water.
He says about 10,000 resi
dents will benefit from the
project.
When it opens, projected
to be Fall 2018, the facility
will be able to draw up to 2
million gallons of water a
day out of Lake Oconee.
“Based on current
average usage, [that] is
more than enough during
the peak summer months.
As demand increases, the
treatment plant can be
expanded,” according to the
letter sent to customers. It
also promises “water from a
surface treatment plant will
be a softer, less mineral-lad
en protect that we believe
will be more pleasing.”
Both Piedmont Water
CEO Jerry Shaifer and
president Adam Shaifer
declined to be interviewed
this week by the Lake
Oconee News, but Adam
Shaifer answered email
questions through their
public relations company.
So, how will the new
facility impact water rates?
Shaifer said Tuesday that’s
“not [been] determined
at this time, but rates will
continue to be set in ac
cordance with the con
tractual limitations in
place since 1995.” When
Piedmont Water purchased
the Reynolds system, it in
herited a long-term agree
ment prohibiting rates to
be higher than any city or
county provider within 75
miles of the development,
WWW.CBLAKEOCONEE.COM
according to Shaifer.
But, in a 12-page letter
to customers in November
2015, the Shaifers indicated
they had already acquired
a site for the plant, secured
funding and held a long
term contract with Georgia
Power for water from Lake
Oconee.
“The dilemma,” they
wrote at the time, “is that,
at the current customer
level, the additional costs
to supply water from such
a facility would be $25 per
month for each customer, a
number which would be un
acceptable to many.” They
said they did not proceed
with the project then,
hoping that an improved
real estate market would
allow them to “partially
fund” operating costs with
tap fees from new construc
tion.
This week, Shaifer did
not indicate whether or not
customers would have help
paying for the new treat
ment plant.
The November 2015
letter came as the result
of a public uproar on the
social media application
Nextdoor over Piedmont
Water’s water quality, rates
and the odor of the utility’s
sewer system.
Piedmont Water is a
private utility that is only
regulated for water quality
by the Georgia Environ
mental Protects Division of
the Department of Natural
Resources. In Georgia,
the Public Service Com
mission does not regulate
water systems. Most are
controlled by city or county
governments.
Piedmont’s water and
sewer rates, other services
and customer service are
not regulated by any gov
ernmental agency.
“I’m excited for the
people that live in the area
that Piedmont serves,” said
Greene County Commis
sioner Ernie Filice, whose
district includes the area
to be served by the new
treatment plant. “It will
mean a huge increase in
the quality of the water. I
think it’s going to mean that
the homeowners will not
need all the sophisticated
systems in their house.”
Currently, water comes
from underground aquifers,
pumped from more than
20 wells. The quality of
this water can vary based
on the amount and types of
minerals it contains.
“Aquifers in the Piedmont
region generally contain
reasonably hard water,” the
Shaifers said in November
2015, “and we have found
the Reynolds system to be
among the most trouble
some.”
Shaifer says the water
is “treated at each source
with chlorine and various
types of advanced filtration
systems.
But in December 2016, the
Piedmont Water/Reynolds
system was slapped with
six violations of water
quality. The Georgia EPD
website confirmed that five
of the violations were for
exceeding allowed levels of
Combined Radium (-226 &
-228) during tests conduct
ed from Oct. 1,2015 to June
30, 2016.
Piedmont water shut
down the three wells where
the violations occurred.
With the switch to surface
water from Lake Oconee,
Shaifer told the Lake Oconee
News Tuesday that “most of
the wells will be taken out of
service at the time the plant
is made operational.”
The treatment plant is
to be located “just off Lake
Oconee Trail,” according
to the letter sent to cus
tomers this week but an
internet search of county
tax records this week does
not show Piedmont Water
owning property along
Lake Oconee Trail or its
immediate side roads. All
land appears to be owned
by Metropolitan Life which
owns Reynolds.
Shaifer said the project is
funded only with Piedmont
Water’s “private resources”
and that Reynolds Lake
Oconee is not helping pay
for the cost of the plant.
He said the project is in
the design stages and con
struction is expected to
begin later this year. Shaifer
indicated that several new
jobs will be created to
operate the facility.
Piedmont Water says it
will host a meeting “in the
coming weeks” to address
questions that custom
ers might have about the
project.
CLARIFICATION
In an article in last week's Lake Oconee News
("Piedmont Water seeks renewal of wastewater
permit from EPD"), Piedmont Water was identified
as an "unregulated, privately-owned company." The
term "unregulated" was meant to indicate that rates,
services and customer service are not regulated by
the Georgia Public Service Commission or any state,
county, municipal or governmental body. However,
the state Environmental Protection Division does
have oversight of the quality of the water processed
by Piedmont Water and the company is subject to
both scheduled and unscheduled quality testing on a
regular basis.
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MORGAN COUNTY
Madison approves used car sales
for pawn shop, receives land gift
INTRODUCING the Area’s Most Outstanding
Memory Care and Assisted Living
OPENING SOON AT THE GLEN
Coming to Lake Oconee, The Glen will offer cutting-edge Memory Care
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call for exceptional licensed supportive care, or Independent Living with the
ambiance of a resort, you will know you have chosen the best.
Katherine Klimt
katherine@lakoconeenews.us
Monday evening’s city
council meeting was eventful
all around, even outside of
the controversial planned
residential districts discus
sion covered elsewhere in
this paper. During the Feb.
13 session, the city approved
the sale of used cars at a pawn
shop, accepted a small land
gift, and appointed three
new committee members.
Michael Ghioto, pro
prietor of 441 Pawn on
Eatonton Road, had pre
viously requested the
Planning and Zoning Com
mission for a conditional
use permit to allow the
sale of a small number of
used cars on his pawn shop
property. Ghioto explained
that the shop would at most
sell between two and six
cars per year, and that after
sale, each individual vehicle
would remain in the shop’s
parking lot for a very limited
amount of time.
The permit was subject
to a public hearing, but
proved uncontroversial. City
planning director Monica
Callahan did have to allay
some concerns on the
part of council members,
who worried that Ghioto’s
request would set a prece
dent for those who may wish
to establish used car lots in
commercial spaces designat
ed for other uses. Callahan
explained that granting a
conditional use request does
not establish precedent, as
each individual case would
have to submit a proposal to
the city council.
Callahan then present
ed the council with a gift
from Madison’s Murray
family, who have granted
a two-acre lot adjacent to
Elm Street to be developed
as a future playground. Joe
Diletto took the opportunity
to remember Chris Murray,
who passed away of a heart
attack last year. The gift was
unanimously accepted by
the council.
Lastly, there are three
new appointments to city
and county committees.
Patsy Harris was approved
for a three-year term in
the Cemetery Stewardship
Commission, Richmond
Wall was appointed to the
Planning and Zoning Com
mission for a two-year term
and Angela Daniel was
re-appointed for a six-year
tenure in the Morgan
County Board of Health.
Call 706-999-3535 to learn more.
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Greensboro, GA 30642
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LAKE COUNTRY
Local students make Alabama honors lists
Memory Care Assisted Living Independent Living
Several local students
enrolled during the 2016 fall
semester at the University of
Alabama were named to the
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PUTNAM UOUNTY
BRANCH OF PINNACLE
CREDIT UNION
1076 Lake Oconee Pkwy.
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LCNDFR
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dean’s list with an academic
record of 3.5 (or above) or
the president’s list with an
academic record of 4.0 (all
A’s).
Local students qualify
ing for dean’s list honors
included: Laura Kathryn
Hollingsworth of Bishop,
Julia Camden Roper of
Greensboro, Chandler
Reid Reynolds of Greens
boro, Katharine S Broach
of Madison and Jordan A.
Tinnell of Watkinsville.
Local students qualify
ing for the president’s list
included: Jasmyne Williams
of Madison and Austin S.
Coates of Watkinsville.
THRIFT SHOP
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•Food for Friends
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706.485.4066
151 Industrial Blvd.
P.O. Box 3971
Eatonton, GA 31024
(across from Haband)
SERVING THOSE IN NEED
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