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60 The Authority | October 2024 Scams article continued from page 49. Brandon said. “We have been doing a successful job and how do we know that? If you check our rates, it’s among the lowest in this area. In fact, it’s among the lowest in Pennsylvania.” Brandon said a well-run public water system is a “cash cow” for private investors. Water is invaluable and Jenkins said he takes caring for the resource personally. With climate change plus an aging infrastructure adding pressure to the supply, Jenkins believes a publicly operated system is best equipped to deal with those issues while keeping water affordable. “We have no profit incentive,” Brandon said. “We have no investor pressure. We’re just doing all the best practices in making it work.” The inevitability of consolidation — privatized or otherwise For some municipally-owned systems, public consolidation might no longer be an option. Downingtown Municipal Water Authority is surrounded by Pennsylvania American Water and Aqua Pennsylvania. If it were 20 years ago, finding a public system to enjoin with would be a realistic endeavor. But today, as the lone public system in this portion of Chester County, that solution is probably out of reach. “We’re struggling to keep our rates low and provide the best product we can,” DMWA Executive Director Steve Sullins said. “Now, how long is that going to last? I don’t know.” Despite Aqua approaching the authority “many, many” times to sell, Sullins still sees the importance of the system remaining in public hands. “My belief is the value of this authority well outweighs the sale price of what they offer up front,” Sullins said. The Borough of Downingtown owns DMWA and its assets, so it’s not his job to decide on a sale. However, he makes it a point to convince decision- makers of his point of view. DMWA has gotten creative in generating revenue. It owns property and leases it for parking. It sells water in bulk to swimming pool owners. The plant spends hundreds of thousands of dollars on gas and electric bills to treat the water each year. Officials are looking into running their plant on solar power, cutting down those costs. At the same time, however, the plant is aging. Sullins said, “everything is just getting tired.” He believes consolidation will eventually have to happen. He’s just unsure who will answer the call. Bellitto, from North Penn, is no Beyoncè. He can still manage to go to the grocery store without being blitzed by the paparazzi. But when people talk about his product, he’s one of the first people on the front lines. “It’s a bad day when our customers are thinking about the water,” Bellitto said. He encourages other public water officials to speak up. “If we don’t waive our own flag and if we don’t blow our own horns, people are going to see all the negative news that’s out there and perhaps come to an inappropriate conclusion — that maybe they can’t trust the water that’s coming out of their faucet,” Bellitto said. S “We have no profit incentive,” ... “We have no investor pressure. We’re just doing all the best practices in making it work.”