HORTONVILLE — The Town of Delaware has several irons in the fire - and they are starting to get hot.

• The first iron is the purchase of the 105-year-old Callicoon Water Company by the Town of Delaware and a $4.2 million overhaul of the system.

The town has been awarded $3 million in state grants and will bond $1.2 million with a 0% interest loan. Rates are expected to jump 62 percent for the affected users as repairs are made to the antiquated water system, including the installation of 167 digital water meters.

The upgrade will also include replacing 7,000 feet of pipe and refurbishing two wellheads.

Details about the cost of purchasing the company from its owners is expected to come before the board in the near future for approval, officials said.

The newly-formed water district will include 204 parcels with 167 service connections.

The Public Service Commission is in the process of reviewing the purchase agreement and recommended the town change the wording from a sewer tax to a sewer charge for the affected parcels.

• The second iron is the replacement of the 60-year-old Town Highway Barn currently located on Route 17B alongside the Callicoon Creek in Hortonville.

The town has already purchased new property four miles east of Hortonville on Route 17B to build the new Town Barn and Salt Shed and has secured approximately $500,000 in grant funding to start the projects.

The board passed a resolution to proceed with both Phase I and Phase II of the projects.

“The project includes building a highway garage and salt shed as well as site preparation,” Engineer Bill Brown of Delaware Engineering reported to the board. “We have to remove sand from the site [to prepare for the start of construction].”

According to a fact sheet presented to the board by Delaware Engineering, the current scope of the project includes preparing the site for installation of salt shed as well as work for eventual garage to be constructed.

The town will also have to apply for a driveway permit from the NYS DOT to begin the project.

The third iron in the fire is the replacing of the 27-year-old sewer plant located in the hamlet of Callicoon.

Town Supervisor Ed Sykes said, “The sewer plant is beyond its useful age. It's not going to last forever.”

The current facility sits on Viaduct Rd. and has been flooded several times during severe weather. Officals said sewer plants have an expected life of 20 years.

A new, proposed site is at the end of Creamery Rd. in Callicoon but the town is waiting to proceed pending approval by the NYS DEC and State Historical Preservation Office.

Although the site is out of the flood plain, it contains Indian artifacts which may necessitate costly excavation methods, should it be approved.

The town is negotiating with the current owner on a sales price for the 8.5-acre parcel.

“No question it is the perfect place,” Supervisor Sykes aid. “The owner has it for sale and wants to sell it.”

But Town Attorney Ken Klein cautioned the town “to make sure it meets (DEC) standards [before proceeding].”

What's up with the grease?

Councilman Al Steppich also asked, “Have the restaurants been informed about [installing] grease traps?

“Are the restaurants getting on the ball?” Steppich asked.

Supervisor Sykes said that town officials have been in contact with the various restaurants serviced by the Callicoon Sewer Plant to install grease traps.

According to officials, if grease is put into the system, it not only can clog the pump station but also kill the bacteria used to decompose the waste.

The remediation of these problem have already cost the town tens of thousands of dollars to fix.

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Supervisor Sykes reported the town will be receiving a Woodstock dove from the Sullivan County Visitors Assn. (SCVA) this spring.

The location for the dove will in the municipal parking lot adjacent to Callicoon Real Estate and the dove will be painted by Fremont Center artist Mike Randels.

The SCVA will be placing 48 doves across Sullivan County in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Woodstock, which is August 16-18 of this year.

Bids to be let

The town board approved letting bids for a back-up generator for the Callicoon Pump Station, located in the parking lot of the Sullivan County Democrat.

The bids will be opened in early March for the new generator, which will be hooked to the pump station, and turn on should the pump station lose its primary power.

The temporary generator now in place will be removed once the permanent back-up is installed.