News

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VILLAGE DISTRICT OF EIDELWEISS
SEPTEMBER 2019 NEWSLETTER

In This Issue:

State of the Municipality

Canoe and Kayak Racks

Reinach water tank

Water System Update

Environmental Committee Update

Water meter analysis

Dam Management Policy

Electrical Upgrades to Pump Houses

Water System Seasonal Shut off

Road Equipment Update

EPOA News

Correction to August Newsletter

Upcoming Meetings

State of the Municipality

On September 28th, the BOC is hosting a “State of the Municipality” address.  This meeting will occur at 10am and is being held in the Lodge at the top of Oak Ridge.  Information on Water, Roads, Environment and Budgets will be presented.

Canoe and Kayak Racks

All canoes or any other watercraft of any description shall be removed from all storage racks no later than November 11th.  Any watercraft left on the beaches or on the storage racks after November 11th will be impounded and may be auctioned off or otherwise disposed of at the discretion of the Board of Commissioners. Should the owner of the craft claim the watercraft during the impound period of 180 days or prior to disposal, the owner will be charged a $100 fee for retrieval of the impounded craft.  

Reinach Water Tank

The Reinach Tank plans are on schedule.  The schedule is on the district website.

Water System Update

A leak was located on Interlaken Circle in early August.  Unfortunately, it was impossible to identify the exact location of the leak.  Many of the leaks in our water system originate in this general vicinity and the BOC wanted to investigate the possibility of replacing a large section of pipe rather than replacing one small leak.  By early September, the leak became more severe and it was decided that due to limited available funding, the only responsible option was to fix the leaking pipe and not replace a larger section. Because the leak grew, it was also easier to identify the exact spot of the damaged pipe.

Also, the BOC completed an application on behalf of the district for a grant from the NH Water Trust Fund.

Environmental Committee Update

The committee is working on three significant projects at the present time.  First, the outhouses on four of the VDOE beaches have not been “pumped clean” in many years.  The committee is working on a long-term plan and hopes to have something for the voters at the annual meeting.

The committee is also working to create a warrant article with the goal of having the voters decide on whether the VDOE should continue weekly beach testing.  The BOC does not support weekly beach testing but is eager to have all the information to present to the voters in March so that the voters can decide if they think this is a good expenditure of tax-payer moneys.

The third project being undertaken by the environmental committee is to address erosion and runoff at several of our public beaches. 

Water Meter Analysis

The commissioners adopted an official policy on September 17, 2019 with guidance from Rick Skarinka of DES, Drinking Water and Groundwater Bureau, and Stacey Herbold – Program manager for Water Use, Registration and Reporting.

In short, the VDOE would be ill advised to install water meters in homes within the district and would benefit more from “zone metering”.  Less than 20% of the entire water bill is allocated towards actual water usage.  The rest is allocated towards infrastructure costs.  As such, it makes no sense to spend hundreds of dollars each year to determine the best way how to bill water users an average of less than $70 worth of water.  To see the full policy and rationale, visit the VDOE website.

Dam Management Policy

The BOC made a concerted effort to keep the pond levels higher this year than in any recent year.  A new policy has been approved by the BOC and will be submitted to the state and Madison Fire Chief for approval.  Included in this plan is a request for the Loon Preservation Committee (LPC) to install a floating loon nest.

Electrical Upgrades to Pump Houses

Two of the pump houses in the district will be having their electrical systems upgraded this fall.  A third pump house will have it done in the spring.  Funding for these projects came from the reallocation of the bond money first approved in 2018 during the annual meeting and then reallocated during the 2019 annual meeting.

Water curb stop seasonal shut off

Seasonal shut off for winter will be available Monday, November 4, 2019 at a cost of $50.00.  Please contact the office to make an appointment.  You may choose to schedule your seasonal shut down at a different time at actual cost incurred by the District. 

Road Equipment Update

The grader is back in service and the new 5500 is outfitted and on the roads.

EPOA News

Thank you to the EPOA for the following projects & contributions:

-Repairing the fencing around the playground and maintaining & painting the swing-set this fall. 

-Purchasing 2 additional speed bumps for Eidelweiss Drive to be installed near Boulder Beach next year.

-Ongoing landscaping & gardening at multiple locations and VLAP pond testing this past summer.

-Presentation on Pond Health & Invasive Aquatic Plants by NH State Biologist was on Sat 9/14.

-UPCOMING EPOA EVENTS

-Italian Shared Dinner on 10/12  

-Fall Foliage Coffee & Donuts on 10/13 

Correction to August Newsletter

The capital reserve funds update stated that the Water Tank CRF has a balance $40,842.  It neglected to also state that $20,000 would be added to the fund this year.

Upcoming VDOE Meetings

Check the VDOE website for all meetings & locations.

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                             Board of Commissioners            Village District of Eidelweiss                  1680 Conway Rd Box 1027                            Madison, New Hampshire 03849                                           603-367-9022

WATER SYSTEM METER COST ANALYSIS

For decades, some property owners within the Village District of Eidelweiss (VDOE) have supported the installation of water meters for every property that is connected to the district water system.  At times, this has been a contentious issue.  The intent of this official statement from the Board of Commissioners is to put this debate to rest so that a divisive issue can be put behind the district.

This official policy was crafted in July 2019 by the commissioners with guidance from Rick Skarinka of DES, Drinking Water and Groundwater Bureau, and Stacey Herbold – Program manager for Water Use, Registration and Reporting.

During the 2019 VDOE annual meeting of 2/23/19, the voters approved a total water budget of $225,755 which has been in line with the water budgets of recent years.

Of the $225,755 that was raised for the water system (does not include the new Reinach Tank because that expense is coming from taxes), all but $32,000 are fixed expenses affiliated with having a water system.  These expenses must occur regardless of the quantity of water that is actually used by any home connected to the water system and are therefore a fixed cost that must be shared equally.  The value in our water system comes from having water available in a home at any time.

Our district has approximately 470 homes connected to the system.  That means the total variable cost for water averages less than $70 per home.  For the district to put in meters to determine a “fair” way to raise $32,000 when the most any single property owner could save is less than $70 annually does not make fiscal sense.  The meter alone is hundreds of dollars per house and in some cases would be far greater than that.  These meters would need to be installed ($300+ per home), monitored, and billed.  The district would be better off spending this money on repairing water lines and other upgrades to our system than it would be in determining the “fairest” way to allocate less than $70 worth of water.

This document accepted by the Board of Commissioners on September 19, 2019. 

Adam Leiser

Kathy Koziell

Jay Buckley

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Dam Inspection/H&H Analysis Form

Dam number: D149004 Hazard Classification: Low, recommend upgrading to Significant Condition Assessment: Fair Dam name(s): Pea Porridge Pond Middle & Little Dam Town: Madison Date of inspection/s: May 29 & June 5, 2019 Inspector: Charlie Krautmann Inspection Attendees: Adam Leiser (Commissioner), Kelly Robitaille (Highway Dept) and other abutters to the ponds Water level: ~0.48’ flowing over the stoplog bay and 0.81’ below the top of the concrete drop inlet structure. Report date: June 12, 2019

Pertinent Data: Maximum Height: 17 ft Storage: 210 ac-ft perm, 406 ac-ft max.* Overall Length: ~175 ft** Drainage Area: 2.7 mi2 or 1,731 acres Pond Area: 46 acres Design event: 100-year storm 50 Year Storm: 536 cfs inflow routed to 136 cfs outflow w/ 3.25 ft of freeboard 100 Year Storm: 640 cfs inflow routed to 154 cfs outflow w/ 3.01 ft of freeboard Discharge Capacity: 342 cfs w/1-ft fbd- no operations 1,012 cfs no fbd-no operations Type of Construction: Earth embankment Construction Date: 1966 Outlet Works: 1 – 60’ long, concrete culvert that is 48” wide and 60” high that controls outflow from the stoplog bay and horizontal orifice 1 – 3’ wide stoplog bay (Design Drawings suggest it is 11’ high) 1 – Horizontal Orifice/Grate that is 6.0’ wide and ~5.2’ long 1 – Auxiliary Spillway on Left Abutment/Beach Area along Eidelweiss Drive that diverts flow through downstream playground. Design drawings suggest invert is 80’ wide

  • Storage Volumes based on previous analysis ** Excluding auxiliary spillway

Dam Inspection Observations:
Feature Observation
Type M/S/ NA*
Downstream embankment
• Entire embankment covered with saplings, brush and trees M

Spillway • Concrete has a significant amount of exposed aggregate • Crack/leakage observed in concrete drop structure along the left wall, a few feet below the top of the structure.
M/S S

Auxiliary Spillway • Trees and boat racks would impede flow at the approach to the auxiliary spillway
M

• Eidelweiss Drive acts as spillway NA
Dam owner interview/comments
• See discussion below. NA

*Type of Deficiency: M-Maintenance; S-Structural; NA-Not Applicable

Downstream Hazard Review:
Feature Dist. d/s (miles/feet)
Observation
D149004/Eidelweiss Drive
0’ If dam completely failed, it would sever access across Eidelweiss Drive Grachen Drive ~1,780’ 60” diameter corrugated metal culvert below a gravel (Village District) road NH Rte. 113 ~3,780 Concrete box culvert that is 68” wide and 63” high
Upper Pequawket Pond
~14,500’ NA

Hazard Classification/Justification – Low to Significant hazard, Dam Breach Analysis: Date of last breach analysis 1979 & 1991 Requires updated analysis No

• Grachen Drive and NH Rte. 113 are the only apparent downstream structures that have the potential to be overtopped prior to the breach being attenuated by the Pequawket River. • A cross-section was created for the residential structure on Winnigon Drive (owner Larry Leonard) that sits close to the river. Based on the model, the house remains untouched by both breach scenarios. All other residential structures are much higher than the river bed and would not be impacted by a breach. This remains true for residential structures on Grachen Drive, Bergdorf Place, Brookstone Lane and Pebblebrook Lane.

Breach Assumptions • Bottom Elevation: 642.71’ (Based on pond bottom during survey. Culvert invert is 636.698’, ie. conservative estimate). • Breach Height: 8.0’ (Dam Height is 17.0’, ie. conservative estimate). • Bottom Width: 12.0’ (Based on outlet configuration and steep valley slopes). • Start Time: 12.2 hours (Based on peak inflow at 12.65 hours). • Breach Time: 0.4 hours

Grachen Drive • 50 Year Storm: 136 cfs inflow routed to 136 cfs outflow w/ 3.11 ft of freeboard • 100 Year Storm: 154 cfs inflow routed to 154 cfs outflow w/ 2.61 ft of freeboard • Sunny-Day Breach: 356 cfs inflow routed to 356 cfs outflow w/ 0.75 ft of overtopping • 50 Yr Storm & Breach: 477 cfs inflow routed to 477 cfs outflow w/ 1.10 ft of overtopping • 100 Yr Storm & Breach: 504 cfs inflow routed to 504 cfs outflow w/ 1.16 ft of overtopping

NH Route 113 • 50 Year Storm: 555 cfs inflow routed to 555 cfs outflow w/ 0.70 ft of overtopping • 100 Year Storm: 692 cfs inflow routed to 692 cfs outflow w/ 0.91 ft of overtopping • Sunny-Day Breach: 356 cfs inflow routed to 356 cfs outflow w/ 0.20 ft of overtopping

• 50 Yr Storm & Breach: 976 cfs inflow routed to 976 cfs outflow w/ 1.24 ft of overtopping • 100 Yr Storm & Breach: 1,112 cfs inflow routed to 1,112 cfs outflow w/ a maximum of 1.37 ft of overtopping. Road overtops for 8+ hours
Hydrologic/Hydraulic Analysis: Required Discharge Capacity Env-Wr 303.11 or 403.04 100-year Date of last analysis 2019 Meets current discharge requirement with required freeboard Yes If “N”, does dam overtop during design event? No Requires updated analysis No

• H&H performed with HydroCAD 10.00 using Atlas 14 precipitation • 50-year, 24 hr. rain = 6.43 inches • 100- year, 24 hr. rain = 7.17 inches • DA = 2.7 mi2 or 1,731 acres • NHDES Dam Safety and a Surveyor from the Engineering & Construction Section surveyed (via differential leveling) the appurtenant structures along all three ponds on June 5th, 2019. The following elevations are based on that survey which have an accuracy of ±0.1’.

• Little Pea Porridge Pond/Dam o Water Surface Elevation = 647.19’ o Water Surface Elevation at Middle Pea = 647.34’ o Top of Stoplogs = 646.52’ o Top of Concrete/Drop Inlet = 648.0’ o Invert of Culvert (In & Out) = 636.69’ o Pond Bottom In Front of Drop Inlet = 643.29’ o Crest of Road Above Culvert = 652.44’ o Control Point of Auxiliary Spillway = 650.69’

• Big Pea Porridge Pond/Dam o Water Surface Elevation = 648.42’ o Control Point of Outlet (man-made, concrete) = 647.49’ o Pond Bottom 10’ Upstream of Control Point = 645.89’ o Stream Bottom 25’ Downstream of Control Point = 647.19’ o Water Surface Elevation 50’ Downstream of Control Point = 647.69’

• Big Loop Road o Water Surface Elevation Upstream of Culvert= 647.37’ o Water Surface Elevation Downstream of Culvert= 647.35’ o Water Surface Elevation at Middle Pea (900’ downstream) = 647.34’ o Crest of Road Above Culvert = 652.38’ o Crest of Road Right Abutment (low spot) = 651.57’ o Culvert Invert Upstream = 645.40’ o Culvert Invert Downstream = 645.74’

Operations, Maintenance, and Response Form: Plan on file, updated, and meets current requirements No

• An OMR was submitted in August of 2016 although reflects the dam as a low hazard

structure. The OMR should be reviewed and updated and the hazard classification should be changed to Significant.

Emergency Action Plan: EAP on file, up to date, meets current requirements No

• An EAP is required based on the dam being upgraded (from a Low hazard dam) to a Significant hazard dam. A Simplified Inundation Map (Env-Wr 503.02) should be applicable in this case as only 2 structures (State and Town Road) in the near vicinity of the dam are impacted. Therefore, the owner would be exempt from a breach analysis (based on Env-Wr 502.02).

Access and Security: • The dam is accessed by vehicle approximately 0.5’ miles east of NH Route 113 at the main entrance to Eidelweiss Village District on Eidelweiss Drive. The beach area acts as the right abutment. There are a handful of houses that overlook the beach and dam area. The stoplog bay is padlocked although all areas of the dam are easily accessed by foot.

Directions: • Take NH Rte. 16 (Chocorua Mountain Highway) to the intersection of NH Rte. 113 south in Albany/Conway. Head south on NH Rte. 113 for ~2.25 miles and then take a left (east) onto Eidelweiss Drive. The dam is approximately 0.5’ miles east of NH Route 113 at the main entrance to Eidelweiss Village District on Eidelweiss Drive

Design: • 1965, October 22 – Drawings received by L.F. Brown, Engineer (Concord, NH) for design of Dam & Roadway at Eidelweiss for Great Northen Land Corporation (Title Sheet and 3 Drawings). Sheet C1 was revised and resubmitted on December 8, 1965. o Sheet C1 – Control Structure Design at Outlet of Both Big Pea and Middle Pea to maintain elevation 648.0’ o Sheet C2 – Auxiliary Spillway 80’ wide with invert of 649.5’ o Sheet C2 – Crest of Dam = 652.0’ o Sheet C2 – Outlet Invert U/S = 637.0’ o Sheet C2 – Outlet Invert D/S= 636.89’ (Slope of 0.2%) o Sheet C2 – Design Elevation of Pond and Top of Stoplogs = 648.0’

Ongoing Discussions with: John Cooley – Senior Biologist with the Loon Preservation Committee: jcooley@loon.org Carol Henderson – NHF&G Environmental Review Coordinator: Carol.Henderson@wildlife.nh.gov Terri Warren: warrenterri@yahoo.com Terri Cancelarich – VDOE Resident & Big Pea abutter: TLcancelarich@wellington.com John Cancelarich – VDOE Resident & Big Pea abutter: cancelarich@yahoo.com Larry Leonard – VDOE Resident: skiman194@aol.com Rob Galante – Big Pea abutter: robgalante@eastcoastflies.com Nancy Cole – VDOE Administrator: office@vdoe-nh.org & Commissioners: commissioner1@vdoe-nh.org, commissioner2@vdoe-nh.org, commissioner3@vdoe-nh.org

https://vdoe-nh.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/20190612-D149004-HH-Report.pdf

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Eidelweiss & Pea Porridge Ponds

Information & Rules for Visitors & Renters 2019

  • Fires – Fires are not permitted in Eidelweiss unless the homeowner has a fire permit. Renters are required to obtain their own permits.
  • Fireworks – Fireworks are illegal in the town of Madison and in Eidelweiss.   They also pose a fire risk.  Please be respectful of this law.
  • Noise - We welcome visitors and vacationers!  However, please keep in mind that many of our residents live here full time and need to get up early and get to work. If you are outside at night please keep in mind that noise travels, particularly across the water.  Please be respectful of your neighbors and all residents in Eidelweiss.
  • Canoes/Kayaks – Can only be left unattended on public beaches in the racks that are pre-assigned to owners.  Do not leave any boats unattended on the racks or beaches unless you have the rack number from the homeowner.  Unattended boats left on beaches or racks that are not assigned are subject to removal by law.
  • Traffic and Parking – The roads in Eidelweiss have a lot of traffic in the summer (especially Eidelweiss Drive) and it’s important that any car parked on the street does NOT block the road.  The speed limit on all Eidelweiss Roads is 20 MPH (and lower where posted).  There is a very high volume of children who walk the roads and many people with pets as well.  Please drive slowly and carefully at all times.
  • Water quality – People swim, fish and play in these lakes so we want to keep the water quality high. Bathrooms are located on each beach and we ask that everyone use them and not the ponds when necessary. 
  • Loons – Loons are a threatened and protected species in New Hampshire.  They are also highly affected by water quality. The loons on the ponds in Eidelweiss eat fish, frogs and other natural animals found in the water. Loons should not be fed, chased or approached for any reason. Please maintain a respectable distance and especially stay far away from loon nests as well.  You can learn more about loons at The Loon Center in Moultonborough or at their website www.loon.org.
  • Ducks - Please do not feed ducks as it encourages them to flock near beaches. Their ongoing presence near beaches can adversely affect the water quality where people swim.
  • Playground – No pets are allowed in the playground in Eidelweiss. Trash should not be left in playground areas.
  • Fishing - A fishing license IS REQUIRED by NH state law for anyone 16 years of age or older.  A fishing license can be purchased online, at Walmart or at the Army Barracks in North Conway.  Also, lead fishing sinkers and lead jigs are illegal in NH.  They can be a deadly contaminant for loons.  Non-toxic tackle is available for purchase throughout New Hampshire.
  • Beaches – Pets are NOT permitted on the beaches at any time (except for leashed service animals). A carry-in carry-out policy is in effect. If you bring it with you, please take it with you when you leave. Beach regulations are posted at each public beach.
  • Trash – Please do NOT leave any trash or recycling anywhere outside at any time. There are bears and other wild animals that will be attracted to the smell of food.
  • Dump/Transfer Station - A pass is needed to access this facility. The owner of your rental home should be supplying a one day pass. Please be sure to separate recyclables and discard as posted at the dump. The dump is located at 219 Boulder Rd (off Conway Rd/Route 113) and is open Friday 7a-12p; Sat & Sun 7a-4p; Monday 7a-12p.
  • Non-emergency contact for Madison Police – (603) 367-8334.