Lynnfield Center Water District Hosts Project Update Presentation

LYNNFIELD, MA — The Lynnfield Center Water District Board of Commissioners will host an informational presentation next week updating customers on current projects and programs.

The district presentation will be held at 7 p.m. on Dec. 14. To access the meeting, which will be held via Zoom, click here.

The meeting will include an update on the most recent Tax Levy Vote which will cut the tax levy to $0.46 cents per $1,000 of assessed value starting in January 2021. That's a 50 percent decrease from last year. The current tax levy is assessed at $0.93 cents per $1,000 of assessed value. Last month, the Board of Commissioners and the Town of Lynnfield Assessor met to discuss and vote on these proposed changes.

The meeting will also include a presentation on the WaterSmart Platform, a new multi-functional payment portal. The features include individualized customer portals, usage insights, leak alerts, increased usage notifications, bill forecast notifications, paperless billing, electronic payments, online form submission, bill explainer, water-saving tips and more.

A presentation on proposed capital improvement programs will also be part of the meeting. LCWD partnered with the CDM Smith Project Team in order to identify supplemental water sources for the future. Following an extensive study of options for supplementing its water supply, consulting partner CDM Smith recommended that the District pursue an interconnection with the Town of Wakefield.

Doing so would enable the District to draw up an additional 25 percent of its current supply capacity from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority through the Wakefield water system. The recommendation also includes construction of a new Water Treatment Plant at the existing Glen Drive facility and other improvements at the Main Street Station in an effort to “level the playing field in regards to water quality from multiple groundwater sources in the District,” Superintendent Scenna said.

“We encourage all residents to attend this event in order to get a better understanding of our goals in both supplementing our water sources and also providing consistent water quality,” said Superintendent Scenna. “Most importantly we want to hear from members of our community so that we can have a robust discussion of these issues. In the Spring, members will ultimately be asked to set the direction of the District by voting to appropriate funds for these projects.”

The Board of Commissioners still haven't voted on pursuing a particular approach with the proposed capital improvements. Several options, including some with the Lynnfield Water District, have also been discussed. The plan is to seek an appropriation from the District in the Spring of 2021.