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Scott Chase
Executive Director |
Water and Wastewater Authority
27 High Street
Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Voice (845) 486-3601 Fax (845) 486-3610
e-Mail
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Mission Statement
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The Authority is a public benefit corporation that was created in 1992 by the State Legislature for the purpose of assisting the County and its municipalities in providing adequate supplies of clean, reasonably priced water and the proper treatment of wastewater. In addition to being available to assist municipalities with their water and wastewater treatment needs, the Authority owns and operates seven water systems and three wastewater systems in the Towns of Beekman, Dover, Hyde Park, Pleasant Valley, Rhinebeck, and Red Hook. Collectively, these systems service over 10,000 people.
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A Board of Directors appointed by the County Legislature and the County Executive governs the Authority. Thomas LeGrand, a businessman from Rhinebeck, chairs the Board of Directors. Daniel McCabe, an attorney who lives in the Town of Poughkeepsie is the Vice Chairperson. Vincent J. DiMaso, a commercial real estate broker living in the Town of Poughkeepsie is Treasurer. Rudy Vavra, an artist with a background in environmental design architecture, resides in Milan. Samuel Bartholomew, a retired public works commissioner residing in the Town of Beekman, serves as an Authority Officer and holds a non-voting position on the Board as Secretary. Scott Chase heads up the Authority staff as the Executive Director, with Bridget Barclay as the Deputy Director. Eighteen other employees make up the remainder of the Office and Operations support staff.
Since 1999, the Authority has completed over $41 million dollars in capital improvement projects. The largest construction project was the $33 million construction of a 24” 13-mile pipeline along the County-owned Maybrook corridor and public highways running from Poughkeepsie to East Fishkill. This project enabled the linking of the Hudson River and other sources from the Poughkeepsie area to the central and southern area of Dutchess County; providing more options for safe and secure water supplies for existing and future development in this region. County Executive William Steinhaus was instrumental in securing over $22 million in funding for this project from the State and IBM Corporation. The project was completed in 2007.
Other significant projects have included:
- the acquisition of the Dalton Farms water and sewer systems in the Town of Beekman (Fall 2004).
- the Zone D/Harbourd Hills Expansion Project completed in 2002. This project allowed the Harbourd Hills area to abandon groundwater sources which had faced contamination concerns and receive water from the Authority's existing Hyde Park Water Treatment Plant which has the Hudson River as its source. The existing Harbourd Hills water district of 224 customers, and an expanded service area consisting of 175 properties were provided this new water supply source.
- the extension of water mains to serve the Staatsburg area. The former Staatsburg Water Company had faced both quality and quantity problems prior to the Authority acquisition of the system. The extension of water service from the Hyde Park Water Treatment Plant, completed in 2000, provided a solution to both problems.
- also in 2000 the Authority completed the acquisition of the Rokeby Homes, Inc. water system in Red Hook . The Rokeby project involved the transfer of a small, primarily residential system from private ownership to the Authority.
- improvements in the Mountain View area of Staatsburg, water main extensions on Saint Andrew's Road in Hyde Park, meter installation, main and service line replacements in the Schreiber Water System, reconstruction of the Chelsea Cove Sewer Plant, as well as continuing improvements to other existing systems owned by the Authority.
The Authority has also been involved in water resource management activities countywide including local water resource studies. To this end, the Authority has worked in partnership with four municipalities in the Harlem Valley on a water resource protection plan and has provided assistance to a water resource protection effort undertaken by the towns of Stanford, Beekman, Pawling and Dover. Authority staff is currently managing a countywide Groundwater Supply Tracking Project funded by Dutchess County. The project will assist the County in identifying early warning signs of aquifer stress from drought conditions and development. The information developed through this project will enable the County to assist local municipalities by recommending both short and long term strategies to manage and protect aquifers, individual wells, and public water supplies. Using County funds to engage a hydrogeologist, the Authority also completed a project to issue an aquifer recharge and septic density report and recommendations. The report recommends that in areas relying on individual wells and conventional septic systems that septic density be regulated by soil type. The report may be viewed through the link with our home page.
Scott Chase, Executive Director
DCWWA 845-486-3601
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