OXFORD — Oxford officials said the town needs to encourage residents and business owners to become customers of its wastewater services.

Selectmen invited Sewer Department Superintendent Zhenya Schevchenko to their Thursday meeting after a couple residents asked about the process of tying their properties into the service.

Oxford Sewer Department Superintendent Zhenya Schevchenko answers questions Thursday about the utility’s customer base during the Board of Selectmen meeting. Nicole Carter/Advertiser Democrat

“What are we doing for options for people to hook up?” Board Chairperson Sharon Jackson asked. “What can we do to get new customers? What kind of incentives; how can we market this? It does not seem like we’re doing anything to find customers, which we need to do. I don’t know how, but we need to get more signed up.”

“We’re not charging a standby fee,” Schevchenko said. “Every utility, if the line is going by your house and you choose not to hook up. If you are within 300 feet, the utility will charge you a standby fee. It is in the ordinance but we don’t enforce it.”

“When we originally sold that to people we told them they wouldn’t have to,” Thayer said.

“Rural Development, which gave money to the town, required that,” Schevchenko said. “I don’t see any other way.”

“If we force it, all we’ll do is irritate them,” Thayer countered.

“There are two issues,” Jackson said. “It’s in the ordinance, which we needed to get the loan. We can’t just arbitrarily say we’re not going to follow the ordinance. We would not have gotten the Rural Development loan without that language in there. We do need to address that, we can’t just not follow the ordinance or do what Rural Development said we had to do … the ordinance has to be followed, by law.

“But what can we do to make people want to get on the sewer? How can we make it affordable?”

“That’s a marketing issue that is done way before the utilities are put in,” Schevchenko said.

“I’m glad you brought that up,” Jackson continued. “We as a board need to address that.”

Jackson said that for a property she owns in another town she pays quarterly standby fees of $100.

Floyd Thayer commented that there are financing options available for new customers. Garland suggested that the board look for creative ways to provide loans for sewer hookups. It is the customer’s responsibility to have excavation done to their property prior to getting the service, which seems to be an obstacle.

Schevchenko said there are 18 open applications, meaning properties have been inspected but owners have have not moved forward with being connected, which requires hiring a private plumbing contractor.

Schevchenko said that about 36% of the sewer department’s expenses are covered by revenue and the rest is paid through property taxes.

Schevchenko estimated that of about 800 homes and businesses along Oxford’s public utility line, only 62 are actual customers. Selectmen requested that he provide a report showing exactly how many properties in the public sewer district are not connected so they can review potential standby revenue and work on complying with the ordinance.