Supervisors on Thursday approved a study of Plumstead's
water resources, an effort that should take six months to complete.
The $36,000 contract with Earth Data Northeast of West Whiteland in Chester County
will pay for an analysis of the township's water situation using already existing data, said interim manager David Nyman.
The study comes after a divided board of supervisors in
July approved a lawsuit settlement with Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority that establishes a county sewer district that includes the stretch between routes 413 and 611.
Thursday's vote saw none of the acrimonious debate that
had been seen over the agreement, which opponents had charged would pull groundwater from private wells, threatening them.
Critics had unsuccessfully pushed for the water study to
be conducted before the pact with the sewer authority was authorized.
Supporters signed off on the study, but said it shouldn't
be linked to whether the settlement was approved.
Also Thursday, bickering over a small subdivision off Old Easton Road occurred between the developer and a neighboring family and supervisors.
Developer Pam Northrup said she was frustrated the township
has asked her to conduct another water test, after the Wasser family complained a well was being proposed within 40 feet of
theirs.
Northrup said she's agreed to move the well and to guarantee
the Wassers' water supply for the next five years. Another test would be redundant and expensive, she said.
“It's just a waste of everybody's time and effort,”
said Northrup, who is proposing building seven homes and renovating an eighth.
Supervisor Betsy Helsel, meanwhile, took Northrup to task
for damaging a historic springhouse on the property.
And David Wasser said he wants to make sure his family is
protected.
“When a well is going to be dug 40 feet from your
well, I would guess you would have concerns as well,” he said.
Also Thursday, the board tentatively approved tighter consumer
disclosure rules for developers, a response to headaches at the Estates at Timberly Farm, where the David Cutler Group told home buyers they would be on county sewer, instead of a more expensive site-specific plant.
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