The scheduled meeting on October 12 will be held at Jack Shook‘s house at 10 AM.

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A notice was received from Sharp Water today with results from the latest water test.
It came back positive for coliform. We were not advised to send out a boil water notice but it would not be a bad idea!!!! We will be giving all updates to the community as they come in. Please spread the word.

They will be retesting Tuesday.


Letter from Sharp Water:

7/25/19
 
Water Plant ID # 023-0008
St. Martins by the Bay
Berlin, MD 21811
 
Attn: Jack Shoot
 
            The results of the monthly bacteria sampling have come back positive for total coliform. MDE (Maryland Department of the Environment) has been notified & will be monitoring this mater, closely. Samples have been collected today, to confirm if this is a true reading or a false positive.
 
Eric Hunter
Operations Manager


CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS: 
410-742-3333

​Dear Home Owner:
The Board of Directors is pursuing acquiring public water and we would like to know your true
interest in this endeavor.
Our lovely community of 54 homes and 4 undeveloped lots, was built over 30 years ago with
our own water and sewer system. Back then our water system discharge was approved to
flow directly into the river. Since then environmental concerns have progressed and our
infrastructure has aged.
In the past two years we have received violations from MDE for our water pump house flooding
and having no permit to discharge into the river. We have spent over $14,000 on the purchase
of new pumps for the system. We have had other numerous operational issues resulting in loss
of water and questionable water quality. Dee Settar from MDE “strongly recommended we
consider public water because of the age and placement of our system”.
In August 2017 we submitted the required number of affirmative responses from home owners
requesting we proceed with the study to determine if a public water system from Ocean Pines
to our community was feasible; what the likely costs would be; and to what extent these costs
would be be borne by our community members.
Bob Mitchell from Worcester County recently submitted an estimate (shown below) for water
service to our community. This cost range of $620,190.00 to $750,000.00 includes 8 hydrants.
The assumption is that the main would run through the community and would hook onto some
of the townhomes and cul-de-sacs mains. The numbers reflect an initial estimate and a
potential ceiling estimate, but are just a ballpark estimate. USDA has money to loan and there
is the possibility for grants. Added to this cost would be the annual operational charge for the
water of $250 based on 6 thousand gallons of usage per month. As a funding example a
USDA loan of $750,000.00 at 2% over 20 years is $800 per house per year. At 3% over 40
years it’s $600 per house per year.
We hope to have Bob Mitchell attend our next HOA meeting at the Ocean Pines library at 10
am on August 10. However we need to know your interest, your concerns and your questions
about acquiring public water. 
We thank you for your input.
Your Board