Village of Germantown to address concerns sharing water and sewer services with Richfield before November vote
Germantown residents will vote in November whether to share their water and sewer services with a portion of Richfield. Richfield would bear all costs to the expansion, but locals are concerned that their personal wells could be negatively affected if the referendum is approved.
To address concerns, Village Administrator Steven Kreklow is planning three public information sessions: at 6 p.m. Sept. 29 and Oct. 20, and at 10 a.m. Oct. 11, all at Village Hall, N112 W17001 Mequon Road.
At the sessions, Kreklow will explain the question on the ballot and what a "yes" or "no" vote means, as well as answer questions from residents.
At past Germantown Village Board meetings, residents questioned the sustainability of sharing resources and worried their wells might dry up. Kreklow hopes to reassure residents that appropriate research has been done to avoid this.
"We do get the question about impact on wells quite a bit, and that is something that's been studied," Kreklow said.
The village hired hydrologists to study the new well that's proposed to be shared with the northeast corridor of Richfield and found that Germantown residents' personal wells would not be affected, he said.
"If it's going to be on the ballot, we want to try to do everything we can to make sure that people have the information that they need to make an informed decision," he said.
Residents also worry that their water bills will increase if the referendum passes. But Kreklow said sharing services would actually provide financial stability.
"More customers means more revenues and healthier sewer and water utility," he said.
At a March board meeting, local Katie Kautz questioned why this was Germantown's responsibility. The $7 million to $9 million infrastructure that will be built as a result of Richfield receiving these services will directly benefit Germantown, Kreklow said.
"One of the studies done by economic development in Washington County showed that the economic development that occurred in Richfield would also benefit the village of Germantown in terms of economic growth," he said.
Individuals can attend the sessions virtually via WebEx. A link to join the meeting will be available at germantownwi.gov/referendum.
The question on November's ballot will be:
Shall the Village of Germantown provide water and sanitary sewer service for a fee and on an ongoing basis to customers in a portion of the Village of Richfield pursuant to the terms of an Intergovernmental Agreement between the Village of Richfield and the Village of Germantown?
Quinn Clark can be emailed at QClark@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @Quinn_A_Clark
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Germantown plans information sessions about Richfield water referendum
