THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, May 29, 1996 TAG: 9605290402
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TONI WHITT AND MAC DANIEL
DATELINE: STAFF WRITERS LENGTH: 98 lines
The cities of Portsmouth and Chesapeake unanimously agreed Tuesday to amend a longstanding water contract that officials in both towns could only praise.
The Portsmouth and Chesapeake councils separately agreed to a renegotiated deal Tuesday that will provide revenue to cash-strapped Portsmouth and additional water to Western Branch and parts of Deep Creek, two of Chesapeake's fastest-growing areas.
For Chesapeake, the agreement marked the end of negotiations that had begun in 1991, according to interim City Manager Clarence V. Cuffee.
Due to limits in its capacity to provide water, Portsmouth has had to limit Chesapeake to 3 million gallons a day.
As part of the new contract, Chesapeake will spend an estimated $5.6 million to build a new pumping station at Portsmouth's Lake Meade water reservoir in Suffolk.
That will give Portsmouth the ability to sell Chesapeake an additional 2 million gallons a day once the plant is on-line, giving the city ``a little more cushion'' in its western sections, said Amar Dwarkanath, Chesapeake's director of public utilities.
``To us, this is very important news,'' Dwarkanath said. ``We are very pleased we could work with Portsmouth and that Portsmouth was willing to work with us.''
James R. Spacek, Portsmouth's director of public utilities, described the deal as vital and pointed to it as an example of regional cooperation. Portsmouth, which has struggled with finances, has been kept afloat in recent years through its water sales.
The extra 2 million gallons a day could mean as much as $1.5 million more a year for Portsmouth. Spacek estimated that last year the city sold nearly $1.9 million worth of water to Chesapeake.
Chesapeake has agreed in the contract to pay Portsmouth 1.5 times its regular water rates for the first 3 million gallons. The price on the additional two million gallons a day drops to 1.2 times the retail rate.
Portsmouth also agreed to adjust the minimum purchase amounts and water rates charged to Chesapeake if there are water restrictions.
Chesapeake promised to buy at least 2.6 million gallons when the contract begins Dec. 31, 1999.
The minimum amount increases in million-gallon increments every 10 years after that, until it hits the 5 million gallon maximum in 2020.
Some of the money Portsmouth will earn will be used to cover the cost of the water system - including an $11 million transmission main that Portsmouth built to get water to Chesapeake - but some of the revenue will go directly to the city's coffers to fund day-to-day expenses and other projects, city officials said.
``We're doing some future planning,'' said Chesapeake Vice Mayor Robert T. Nance Jr. ``I think that water's a priority. But do I like spending $5.6 million on a capital project outside of the city? No. But it has to be done.''
Councilman John M. de Triquet, who lives in Western Branch, said the water will serve some vital needs in an area of the city that grew 4.6 percent last year.
``This is also not only good from the standpoint of the citizens, but it's also important to industry,'' he said, noting that the extra water could allow major industries to locate on or near the Interstate 664 corridor in Chesapeake.
The new pump station must be built within 48 months, according to the contract, but Spacek said Portsmouth plans to get the project done as quickly as possible.
The new pump station will provide a small amount of additional water capacity for Portsmouth residents. More importantly, it means that the city will not be giving up any water needed by its residents, Spacek said.
The contract also allows Chesapeake to use Portsmouth's easements and rights of way in Suffolk to install the pipeline that would transport 10 million gallons a day from Lake Gaston to Chesapeake. Spacek said that is only one of the options Chesapeake is considering for the pipeline.
For Chesapeake, the contract is part of a four-pronged, long-term water plan. Portsmouth is one supplier, but Chesapeake also hopes to continue to buy water from Norfolk and to eventually draw 10 million gallons a day from the Lake Gaston pipeline.
In addition, the city is spending $72 million to upgrade its own Northwest River Water Treatment Plant to eliminate salty tasting water during droughts. This will also help the city meet new and tougher federal water standards.
Chesapeake is using a little more than 14.4 million gallons of water a day. It draws 8.5 million gallons of it from the Northwest River. It buys 3.7 million gallons from Norfolk and another 2.9 million gallons from Portsmouth. The difference is lost in production and delivery.
Portsmouth has obtained the necessary environmental permits to build the new pump station.
Spacek said that once the contract is signed, Portsmouth will begin designing the pump station.
Spacek said he hopes construction will begin within a year. ILLUSTRATION: Color graphic by The Virginian-Pilot
What's In It for Chesapeake
Water Production for Chesapeake
What's In It for Portsmouth
For complete Graphic, see microfilm
KEYWORDS: WATER CHESAPEAKE PORTSMOUTH CONTRACT by CNB