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Aloha feud starts to ease after meeting

Customers and utility officials say they are pleased with the newfound progress in a 10-year battle over service and water quality issues.

By PHIL DAVIS
Published September 24, 2005

SEVEN SPRINGS - After decades of accusations, public hearings and lawsuits, a few hours of talk is showing promise in settling a feud between Aloha Utilities and its customers.

Both sides called a Friday meeting a success.

"We had a good, productive session," said Wayne Forehand, point man for a group of 2,000 customers seeking removal from Aloha's service area. "Aloha is listening to us. I think we are coming together."

Aloha president Steve Watford also was pleased.

"Things are going well," Watford said. "We're working our way through the issues one by one."

Friday's meeting was the second since August, when the Florida Public Service Commission ordered the private water utility to sit down with its customers and hammer out a compromise in a 10-year battle over service and water quality issues. The main complaint: Aloha water is sometimes dark and smelly due to an excess of hydrogen sulfide.

Forehand said Friday that discussions are leaning toward a process called fixed-bed anion exchange to strip excessive hydrogen sulfide and other contaminants from the water.

Customers had supported either using aeration to treat Aloha water or simply passing the water on to Tampa Bay Water for treatment. But a University of South Florida study paid for by Aloha suggested fixed-bed anion exchange is the most effective fix.

Forehand said talks have shown that aeration and bypassing Aloha might be too costly. Both sides are still waiting for cost estimates on anion exchange.

The next talk is set for late October.

Forehand said the successful talks should show Aloha the benefit of sitting down with its customers.

"Customer relations is so important and this has been lacking at Aloha," Forehand said. "This shows that when we sit down and have a rational discussion, we really get somewhere."

The utility serves about 12,000 households in the Seven Springs and Trinity area.

Customers rebelled against a settlement worked out by PSC staff and Aloha attorneys. So the PSC voted to send both sides back to the negotiating table and put off the settlement vote for 90 days.

[Last modified September 24, 2005, 01:00:22]