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TWSA officials deny Leatherwood’s request
By Justin Goble
Officials from the Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority denied a local resident’s request to be compensated for damages she claims resulted from “dirty water.”
TWSA members June 20 unanimously voted “no” on Marie Leatherwood’s request to be repaid for damages caused to her home.
Leatherwood, who lives in Sylva, has come before the authority numerous times to complain about the dirty water she claims has ruined four hot water heaters, which, due to leaks, eventually destroyed most of her home’s interior. She also charged the authority with doing unknown amounts of damage to her health with the water, citing a correspondence she had with officials from the Environmental Protection Agency.
After she accuses the board in March of “fraud and extortion” for selling her dirty water for 17 years, TWSA Chairman Randall Turpin suggested she supply a damage estimate for the board to consider.
During a June 13 work session, Leatherwood told board members that the damage was not only hurting her financially, it was creating problems for her insurance company as well, since they were having to pay for damages she claims are TWSA’s fault.
“If TWSA would have been responsible, this never would have happened,” Leatherwood said. “My insurance company is getting the shaft here. They covered the inside damage, but they did not cover the hot water heater.”
TWSA officials said that aside from the more than $500 needed to replace her most recent water heater, Leatherwood never gave a clear figure of what she was asking. She did say it would be “an expensive amount.”
Leatherwood denies this, saying she supplied board members with an estimate of $31,250 for the internal structural damage to her house, which was provided by a local contractor, along with $547.50 for a hot water heater and $1,000 for an insurance deductible.
“Since 1992, TWSA has given me dirty water and fraudulently gave me a product that looks like it came out of the fire hydrant,” Leatherwood told The Herald. “The TWSA board has not only seen it, but has been content to give it to me. In March, I presented verified monetary statements to the TWSA board.”
In other business June 20:
– TWSA officials passed their budget for the 2006-07 fiscal year.
For the authority, each yearly budget is split into two parts. The first, TWSA’s operating budget, totals $2.46 million for the upcoming fiscal year.
The capitol improvement projects budget for 2006-07 totals $6.99 million. This part of the budget includes $50,000 to begin preliminary work on River Road wastewater treatment plant renovations.
Monthly user fees would not increase from last year, according to TWSA Director Joe Cline.
–Officials approved a $1,288,700 bid from the AGRR Corporation for the Cashiers Wastewater plant expansion.
The expansion will give the plant the ability to treat an extra 100,000 gallons of wastewater per day.
Though this is a substantial addition to the plant, Cline said almost all of that 100,000 has already been allocated to users in the Cashiers area.
– Board members unanimously approved a bid from Reynolds Inliner to line 5,640 feet of 24-inch sewer line along the Tuckaseigee River.
According to Cline, the project, which will cost an estimated $465,820, will help improve the flow of wastewater through the line. This in turn can help the authority grant more allocations, since the lining will help cut down backups.
Cline said the construction project should last 90 days, and is set to begin the week of July 10.
– TWSA officials unanimously approved a bid from Lofquist and Associates for the Rhodes Cove sewer rehabilitation.
The project, which will cost an estimated $324,000, will improve sewer lines in the Rhodes Cove area. Cline said many people had added on to the existing lines, creating a “daisy chain” effect. Doing so has made many of the lines inadequate for service, Cline said, and it will be necessary to put in new ones.
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