From left, Tim Burkett, council member, Rus Payne, town supervisor, Justin Lingenfelter, council member and John Barber, council member, of the Town of Carroll, met for a town board meeting, at the Carroll Town Hall, Wednesday. Main topics of discussion revolved around the town’s water system and the upcoming solar eclipse event. P-J photo by Christopher Blakeslee

Carroll Town Board members are up to their necks in H2O … talk that is.

During the most recent town meeting held at the Town Hall, members of the board were briefed on upcoming solar eclipse preparations, year-to-date budgetary line items from the various town department heads and especially, the town’s water supply system and its future.

“I’m requesting a feasibility study,” said Dan Sisson, Carroll water department supervisor. “We have two pumps that need to be replaced at a cost of $30,000 each, plus two tanks which can run upwards of several hundred, thousands of dollars.”

The study, Sisson said, will also reference another direction the town’s board could possibly vote on in the future instead of trying to do a piecemeal patch job on the old system.

“This study also includes a tie-in with Jamestown’s BPU (Board of Public Utilities), ” said Russ Payne, Carroll’s town supervisor. “We would need a buy-in with Kiantone – which they seem enthusiastic about. The BPU has been extremely accommodating and willing to look into this with us – they provide water services to outlying municipalities. So, this isn’t something new for them.”

The feasibility study would provide much-needed information so the town’s board could make a well informed and educated decision.

“Right now, I’m told the cost to run water lines is about $1 million dollars, per mile as compared to having to replace pumps, tanks and all the maintenance that goes with that,” Payne said.

Payne also reported that regardless of which path they choose to take as a board it will most likely require that they apply for grants, he said. However, the town also faces another dilemma – the grant writing process criteria.

“I’m told that the federal government reported that our medium average income for our town is $69,000 which seems a little high to me,” said Payne.

Sisson then asked about the possibility of conducting an income survey to try and get a more accurate read on the actual average income of the residents.

“I think we need to do an income survey, to keep us in the running for grants I’m told we need to be down near the $58,000 mark,” he stated.

In other news:

– The village board has ordered eight Porta Potty rentals for the upcoming April 8 solar eclipse at a cost of $805, with an April 5 pick-up date and a return date of April 10.

“I think we should place some of them near the school facilities if that’s where we are trying to get people to park,” said John Barber, a town council member.

– It was also reported to the town’s board members that the Martz-Kohl Observatory will be closed to all visitors and only their members will be allowed at the observatory the day of the eclipse.

“The last, partial, eclipse we had in 2017, we had more than 900 people here, and we can’t handle that many, and with the potential to have even more people come to this event – because it’s a full eclipse – we have to take precautions,” said Tom Traub of the Martz-Kohl Observatory.