VanBibber Lake utility upgrades will top $16 million

Monday, May 25, 2020

While no one takes a $16.4 million price tag on utility upgrades at Van Bibber Lake for good news, it could also be said that pricey upgrades are not a surprise.

The good news is the upgrades to the water and wastewater systems could be funded by a unique combination of three funding sources, thus keeping the cost of utilities affordable to residents of the Clinton Township community.

Kristy Jerrell of Jerrell Consulting, which is overseeing the grant writing process for Van Bibber Lake, came before the Putnam County Commissioners to present the findings of a utilities study recently undertaken by HWC Engineering.

While the county has no financial stake in the upgrades, it has been listed as the lead applicant for grants because Van Bibber Lake is not an incorporated municipality.

Eric Smith and Dustin Whalen of HWC presented their findings, telling the commissioners that the current systems in place at Van Bibber Lake is 30-40 years old.

“The systems that were initially put in were not to current standards and it has really caused a lot of problems to the operators,” Smith said.

Problems abound in the water system particularly, as residents have low pressure and low flows during most times of the day, as well as dead-end mains, undersized mains, high iron and manganese in the water and problems of access to the hookups of many homes.

This last matter may be the most frustrating of all, as access is under many houses and garages rather than at the road like most communities.

The minerals are also a big problem, though, with Whalen pointing out that “high” iron is considered to be three parts per million, while readings tend to range between seven and eight PPM at Van Bibber.

Proposed upgrades to the water system include an entirely new set of mains, all of them either six inches or four inches. Currently, some spots have 1.5-inch mains.

Additionally, there will be additional hydrants installed around the community, better access and meters, as all customers are currently charged a flat rate regardless of usage.

The price tag for the new water system will be $8,690,430.

On the wastewater front, the total cost will be $7,711,550.

This will entail constructing a new vacuum sewer system while keeping the current treatment plant.

“We briefly looked at their treatment plant but their treatment plant is in great condition,” Whalen said.

The plan is also to improve access to the hookup at each residence.

While Monday’s report completes a study funded by the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA), the question is now how to fund the much larger projects themselves.

The engineers said they will be tackled one at a time, with the hopes to do the new water system in 2021 and wastewater a couple of years thereafter.

As for funding itself, they have already received positive feedback from the State Revolving Fund, USDA Rural Development and OCRA.

Jerrell said only one other project in state history has utilized all three funding sources.

There is also the possibility of stimulus money being part of the package.

“They’re going to want you to be shovel-ready,” Jerrell said.

Should the funding come through for the water project, the target is to keep residents’ water bills to an average of $45 a month.

The target range for wastewater is slightly higher, but the combination would not represent a major increase in average cost over the current monthly flat rate of $85.10 that all residents pay regardless of usage.

The idea is that this would also bring increased accountability and decrease overall usage.

One other thing that should help keep the costs down for Van Bibber residents is that the plan even involves funding for running the service lines on private property, a cost that property owners usually pay themselves.

Jerrell said the conservancy district is already in the process of obtaining easements on all properties for this proposed work.

While the presentation required no formal approval, the commissioners did not express any major objections.

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