Staff Reports
PENDLETON — The town board will hold a public hearing next month on a proposed law that would require that homeowners submit to town inspection of water and sewer connections before selling their property.
The point of presale inspections is to create an opportunity for the town to ensure all sewer and water connections are proper and legal, said Jim Argo, water/sewer superintendent.
“We’ve got a lot of homes without backflow preventer (devices) ... and we find quite a few (illegal) sump pump connections into the sanitary sewers,” he said.
The point at which houses are being sold is a good time to conduct connection inspections because town staff are already on site getting final meter readings for the departing property owner, Argo added.
The law would empower town water/sewer staff to perform the inspections at the time of sale and prevent completion of sales until they’re done, said town attorney Daniel E. Seaman. An inspection fee would be charged.
Other towns in the region have a similar presale inspection requirement, Argo said.
The town requiring connection inspections would bolster its federally required stormwater management plan, according to town Engineer David Britton.
The public hearing will be held at 7:50 p.m. July 7, ahead of the board’s next monthly business meeting.
