SCARBOROUGH – A political newcomer is seeking one of the three seats open on the Scarborough Sanitary District Board of Trustees this fall. The other three candidates are all incumbents with several years of experience.
Voters approved the creation of the Scarborough Sanitary District in 1969 and since then the district has had responsibility for the collection and treatment of the town’s wastewater.
A seven-member board, made up of local residents, has the responsibility for overseeing the sanitary district, and trustees serve three-year terms.
The four candidates are board chairman Jason Greenleaf (who did not provide a photo), clerk Charlie Andreson and board member Robert McSorley, along with newcomer Ronald Bonneau.
The Current asked each candidate two questions to help voters decide whom to support at the polls.
Charles Anderson
Age: 66
Occupation: Civil engineer/professional planner and retired city engineer and public works director
Political Experience: Scarborough Sanitary District Trustee, Scarborough Town Council, Board of Directors of Regional Waste Systems, now ecomaine, Scarborough Long Range Planning Committee, Portland Area Comprehensive Transportation Study Technical Committee and numerous town subcommittees and working groups.
Q: Why are you running for a seat on the sanitary district board?
A: I am seeking re-election to the Scarborough Sanitary District board as a means to give back to the community where I have lived for 39 years, and where my wife and I raised our family. I am a registered professional engineer in Maine, and I hold memberships in the American Institute of Certified Planners.
My experience in local government includes positions as the town engineer and planner in Scarborough, superintendent of the Scarborough Sanitary District, and city engineer/public works director in Sanford. I have also served as a town councilor in Scarborough and on numerous town and regional committees.
I am experienced in establishing public policy and in the management and budgeting of public service agencies and have planned and constructed sewer, highway and drainage projects.
Foremost in my mind during my time on the sanitary district board has been to provide sensible, effective and cost-effective service to the citizens of Scarborough. This is a special place, and I would like to continue to serve the residents of Scarborough through my unique qualifications and experience.
Q: Is the sanitary district doing well in terms of maintaining/increasing infrastructure and keeping rates down?
A: The Scarborough Sanitary District is recognized as one of the best municipal wastewater control facilities in the state of Maine. Its rates are stable and below the average for the 29 agencies in the Greater Portland area.
There was a rate increase in 2014 to address the ongoing requirements of the district, and in part due to the poor economy in the region. The last increase was in 2004. At this time the annual cost for a single-family residence is $396 per year.
The challenge is to provide service to the community, maintain affordable rates, maintain stable and sustainable budgets, preserve assets, including more than 68 miles of gravity sewer, 23 miles of force main, 23 pumping stations, more than 2,000 manhole structures and a 2.5 million gallon per day sewage treatment plant.
Replenishing reserve accounts within the current rate structure to facilitate the timely replacement of depreciated assets is also part of the challenge. The district must employ competent and dedicated personnel to professionally serve its residents 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.
Protection of the public health and safety is paramount as is the requirement of complying with all state and federal regulations and protecting our natural environment. District operations must also be responsive and transparent within the community.
Ronald Bonneau
Age: 64
Occupation: Retired
Political experience: None
Q: Why are you running for a seat on the sanitary district board?
A: I am a native of Maine and a longtime resident of Scarborough. Now that I am retired, I have decided it is an excellent time to become more active in the community and to give back to the town that I have enjoyed living in for so many years.
Working for the Social Security Administration for more than 27 years has given me an appreciation for seniors living on a fixed income. As a result, I believe it is very important to be sensitive to the concerns of citizens when establishing sewer rates and system upgrades.
Q: Is the sanitary district doing well in terms of maintaining/increasing infrastructure and keeping rates down?
A: The sanitary district has done a good job maintaining and increasing the infrastructure. Scarborough has experienced tremendous growth over the years and the district has been able to effectively meet the needs of the community.
As we face more growth challenges in the years ahead, I would appreciate the opportunity to represent Scarborough as a sanitary district trustee. I will work to ensure sewer rates remain low and the quality of services remains high.
Jason Greenleaf
Age: 37
Occupation: Manager at Hunter Panels
Political experience: Six years on the Scarborough Sanitary District Board of Trustees, with two as chairman
Q: Why are you running for a seat on the sanitary district board?
A: With six years on the board and the past two years as chairman, I have thoroughly enjoyed being part of the success of the sanitary district. I am running again to help ensure that the district continues its operational and financial success well into the future while serving its customers at the level they have come to expect. My focus will continue to be on operational efficiency, supporting the district’s exemplary staff and keeping user rates as low as possible through strategic budgeting and cost savings.
Q: Is the sanitary district doing well in terms of maintaining/increasing infrastructure and keeping rates down?
A: The majority of the district’s original infrastructure is aging while new infrastructure continues to increase with commercial and residential development. The trustees and district staff have done a fantastic job maintaining the aging infrastructure while being innovative and budget conscious with the implementation of new infrastructure.
In 2010 the district was able to eliminate an aging pump station on the Eastern Road and replace it with a state-of-the-art station on Old County Road. The district was able to fund the majority of that project on its own. This allowed the district to hold off on rate increases for a few more years before implementing an increase in 2013. Despite the recent rate increase, the district continues to provide service with costs well below the average of area communities.
Robert McSorley
Age: 52
Occupation: Senior project manager/engineer at Sebago Technics
Political experience:Six years on the Scarborough Sanitary District Board of Trustees, three years representing Scarborough on the Portland Water District Board of Trustees, treasurer of the Camp Scarborough board and president of the Hidden Creek Homeowners Association
Q: Why are you running for a seat on the sanitary district board?
A: I want to be of service to the community of Scarborough, and the sanitary board is where I could best use my experience and talents to serve. I have more than 28 years of experience in the civil engineering field and am a registered professional engineer.
I have also served as the assistant district engineer for a municipal water, drainage and stormwater service. I have also been a consultant to several municipalities or jurisdictional agencies for the design and permitting of utility, drainage and stormwater infrastructure.
As a part of my career, I design utility infrastructure for water and sanitary sewer systems. I am also keenly aware of the financial responsibilities from my past experience as vice president of a company and my duties as a senior project manager.
I feel that the sanitary district is a good place to put that experience to work.
Q: Is the sanitary district doing well in terms of maintaining/increasing infrastructure and keeping rates down?
A: I believe that the district is doing a great job. This assessment is based upon how our staff maintains our facilities and responds to the day-to-day issues and the occasional events that happen.
From the superintendent on down, it is evident that the staff takes a lot of pride, and it shows in customer service, performance and looking at ways to better handle and treat wastewater. This is all born out in the reputation and respect that the district across the state.
Our infrastructure, plant, pump stations, mains, etc., is in pretty good shape but will not last forever. Several major projects have occurred during the past decade to deal with aging and outdated infrastructure including a new pump station and transmission main that was able to replace two pump stations and reduce operating costs.
Financially, we would like the district to have more funds in reserve. However, the board made the difficult decisions to operate through the recent bad economic times by using some reserve money in lieu of raising rates. About a year and half ago, having not raised rates for about 10 years and with the worst of the recession behind us, we did raise rates to begin the process of catching back up.
Raising rates is never looked on as a good thing. However, the district has been managed very well and we are on the lower end of the scale for this area of Maine.
A CLOSER LOOK
The Scarborough Community Chamber will hold its annual Candidate’s Night on Tuesday, Oct. 14, at Town Hall. The forum, which is open to the public, will also be broadcast live on Scarborough Cable Access Television Channel 3.
The schedule is as follows:
• 6:15-6:30 p.m. – Sanitary District Board of Trustees
• 6:30-7 p.m. – Board of Education
• 7-9 p.m. – Town Council
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