With No Attendance at Public Hearing, Sewer Authority Adopts 3.5% Rate Increase and 2026 Budget

Wilton’s Water Pollution Control Authority (WPCA) held a swift but actionable meeting on Wednesday, July 9.

User Charges and Budget for FY26

No members of the public took the opportunity to speak at the scheduled public hearing for the proposed 2026 WPCA budget and the related 3.5% rate increase for sewer users.

DPW Director/Town Engineer Frank Smeriglio, who initially presented the proposed budget and user charges at the June 17 WPCA meeting, added some clarification (with input from Wilton CFO Dawn Norton) to earlier questions on a few budget line items, including confirmation that legal fees incurred by the WPCA are being charged to the WPCA budget and not elsewhere in the Town budget. Smeriglio also shared data showing that Wilton’s sewer fees remain at the low end of the range found in many nearby municipalities.

With all questions answered and no public objection, the WPCA members voted unanimously to adopt the budget and user fees, which will now be $292 per unit.

Update on Town-wide Sewer Flows

In what has become a regular feature of WPCA meetings, Smeriglio also updated the WPCA with information on town-wide sewer flows.

He reported the latest annualized average is roughly 472,000 gallons per day — “just a slight tick above” what it was last month, but “still well below” the past-four-year high of 550,000 average annual gallons per day.

While he called that “good news,” he cautioned the WPCA members about the prospect of future development pushing Wilton’s town-wide flows ever closer to the 650,000 average annual gallons per day allowed under the Town’s agreement with Norwalk, which receives Wilton’s sewer flows for treatment.

In addition to the current flow levels, the WPCA has approved new allocations which — along with reserve numbers for vacant buildings and other factors — could potentially bring the flows to 628,000 gallons, or even higher.

While he was guarded about revealing specific locations, Smeriglio said any additional applications could result in “tough decisions.”

“Without talking about which properties, I am getting inquiries for a few other developments around Town,” Smeriglio said. “So it is going to be an issue of where we are… We’re at the edge, close to 650,000 gallons per day, and we’ll still have to make some tough decisions over the next few months.”

Discussion of Infiltration & Inflow Project Bidding

The WPCA members briefly discussed Smeriglio’s approach for proceeding with bids for planned repairs and upgrades which will address “infiltration and inflow” (I&I), the excess water in Wilton’s sanitary sewer system. Efforts to identify and repair sources of I&I have been underway since 2023.

Smeriglio indicated he would be planning to bid the remaining work in phases, to maximize the potential for grant funding to cover some costs while still advancing the needed projects in a timely way. WPCA members agreed with his approach.

Public Comment

In addition to the formal hearing on the WPCA budget, the July 9 meeting also offered the opportunity for public comment. While no one spoke at the meeting, the WPCA did receive one letter which expressed strong opposition to the WPCA’s recent decision to approve a sewer application for the property at 345 Belden Hill Rd. (also known as the School Sisters of Notre Dame property).

The eight-page letter from Wilton residents Kari and Tim Roberts cites a number of data sources (including statistics from Meadow Ridge, a senior development in Redding; GMW has not been able to independently verify the statistics provided by the Robertses before publication).

The Robertses offered a detailed rebuke of the data and assumptions presented by the applicant so far, including everything from traffic and parking to affordability and fit with Wilton’s Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD).

The letter was also sent to Wilton’s Planning and Zoning Commission, which has only heard a pre-application presentation from the developer and has yet to receive a formal application or hold a public hearing. P&Z does not publish letters from members of the public during the pre-application period.

First Selectwoman Toni Boucher, who chairs the WPCA, briefly alluded to the letter but did not address any of its assertions, saying only that “the vast majority [of letters received were] in favor, with one long letter not in favor.”

Nabulsi’s Final WPCA Meeting

In a fitting final act of the meeting and what was almost certainly his final act as a Wilton official, departing Selectman Bas Nabulsi made the motion to adjourn the meeting. Nabulsi is now resigned from his position and is relocating to Massachusetts.