At the February 15, 2022 Sewer Commission Meeting Green and Co. requested to be on the agenda to discuss the possibility of municipal sewer to land they currently have under option on Route 1. They were clear they just wanted a dialogue and that they had no specific proposal. They wanted to understand the process and history. The February 15 Minutes are detailed and reflect the discussion. It was discussed at that meeting, that Portsmouth has communicated that they need significant upgrades to accept more flow. The Sewer Commission supported the developer having a discussion with the City of Portsmouth and asked that there be open communication.
At the February 15, 2022 Select Board Workshop before their regular meeting Sewer was discussed briefly Bill Epperson provided a brief overview of attempts to bring sewer to the Route 1 corridor and indicated that with the Federal Infrastructure Bill there may be the ability to apply for some funds. Lee Arthur brought to their attention that the City of Portsmouth has indicated that in order to accept flow from Rye they need to make significant improvements to their system. Bill Epperson suggested that the next step would be to meet again with Portsmouth.
At the March 8, 2022 Meeting of the Sewer Commissioners discussed setting up a meeting with the Select Board to address Route 1 Sewer further prior to revisiting the issue with the City of Portsmouth. They indicated that they would like to address the following: roles and responsibilities regarding expansions, Town’s vision, area(s), and specifics regarding Route 1 as well as funding strategies and opportunities. I requested a meeting with the Select Board as directed by the Sewer Commission. This was the reason for the March 30, 2022 Meeting of both boards.
