Butler Area Sewer Authority has already voted on the type of sewage storage tanks it will build, and that's that.

BASA Chairman Jerry Patterson told board member Mike English this during Tuesday's board meeting, at which English was to have made a rebuttal to a report of alleged inaccuracies he had made in front of Butler City Council.

That report, authored by BASA manager and engineer John Schon at the request of Patterson, was delivered at the authority's Oct. 28 meeting.

The report detailed erroneous statements allegedly made by English in a presentation to city council on Oct. 22.

English made a rambling attempt to refute the BASA report Tuesday in front of an audience that included members of both the city council and Butler Township commissioners — the two municipal bodies that formed the authority in the 1960s.

He claims his No. 1 priority is to save BASA customers money from the estimated $30 million storage tank project. English repeatedly has said the tank design recommended by Chester Engineers, BASA engineering consultants, and approved by the BASA board in September, should not be the only one put out for bid.

He claims another company, Dutchland, makes a tank different from the one approved by the board that would save up to 40 percent in project costs.

The project is the result of a consent agreement imposed by the state Department of Environmental Protection to end overflows caused by groundwater and stormwater infiltrating the sanitary sewer system.

An Act 537 plan, approved by all municipalities served by BASA — Butler, East Butler, and the townships of Butler, Center, Connoquenessing, Oakland and Summit — calls for the construction of seven holding tanks. The tanks will hold water-laden sewage and slowly release it to the treatment plant.

Jim Bowser, an engineer with Chester Engineers, hired by BASA to help develop the Act 537 plan as well as the specifications for the storage tanks, said all seven tanks will cost between $10 million and $13 million to build and that the total Act 537 plan, including pump stations, line work and site work, will cost an estimated $30 million.

English refused to budge from the $34 million cost he quoted to city council, although he has not explained how he reached that number.

After wading through a few of the issues the authority had with his council presentation, English turned his rebuttal over to Dave Beiler, vice president of sales for Dutchland, the other tank manufacturer.

Beiler criticized the BASA board for not contacting his company, which he, like English, said would save the authority money. However, Beiler said Dutchland hasn't studied the BASA project in detail.

He also criticized Chester Engineering because the firm did not recommend a Dutchland tank.

Both Beiler and English alluded to a relationship between Chester Engineering and one of the firms, NATGUN, that could be unethical since the firm makes the type of tank Chester recommended to the BASA board.

English went even further, saying Schon at one time had worked for Chester.

No evidence of wrongdoing on the part of Chester, Schon or the BASA board was presented by English or Beiler, who said after the meeting it was not unusual for him to weigh in on local authority arguments, such as this one within the BASA board.

Cindy Davis, Butler Township zoning officer, said when she took her position with the township she too had criticisms with the BASA board. But, she said, "to your credit, this staff and board have gone through significant changes in the past three years, and things are getting done.

"This is not your father's sewer authority," she said, adding that the board has been "very thorough in the vetting of engineering services.

In a 3-2 vote the board opted to keep Chester Engineering. Patterson had put the engineering position up for the vote and was on the losing side.

"This board has set a policy and has made a decision recommended by its engineers, and is sticking to it," Davis said.

That decision, Patterson told English, is not up for debate.

"We took a vote on Sept. 28. This tank was approved. No one has said they want to change their minds," Patterson said, pausing to give board members George Shockey, John Heim and Van Peterson the opportunity to interject. None did.

"It's over and now it's time to move on," he said.

Butler Councilwoman Kathy Kline, who lives near a proposed tank site, said she is concerned about the longevity of the tanks.

"I would rather you spend more money now for a tank that will last longer than spending less and having to go back and rebuild at a later date," she said.

Butler Township Commission Chairman Joe Hasychak said he applauds the efforts of the BASA board.

"They have done an excellent job gathering information, and now they've done their homework, made a decision and it's time to move forward," Hasychak said.