VBL receives $700,000 for water upgrades

Planned upgrades to the water system at Van Bibber Lake came a step closer to fruition on Thursday.

The Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) announced that Putnam County has been awarded $700,000 for water system improvement at Van Bibber Lake Conservancy District.

Kristy Jerrell of Jerrell Consulting appeared before the Putnam County Commissioners earlier this year to present the findings of an engineering study that VBL undertook.

Putnam County has no financial interest in the project, but must serve as lead applicant because Van Bibber Lake is not an incorporated community.

The project is a full-system rehabilitation and upgrade of all original, 1970s water distribution system components and the construction of a new water treatment plant.

It will also increase water main sizes to improve system-wide pressure, flow and flushing capabilities and enhance isolation capabilities during future leaks.

Problems abound in the water system, 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.

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.

The water system upgrade is only part of a multi-phase project in which leaders in the Clinton Township community hope to completely overhaul the water and wastewater systems.

Jerrell is helping the community try to find grant opportunities wherever possible, as the price tag for the new water system will be $8,690,430, while the new wastewater system will be $7,711,550.

Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch announced the award as part of more than $8 million in federal grant funding to improve water infrastructure.

The State of Indiana distributes Community Development Block Grant funds to rural communities which assist units of local government with various community projects such as: infrastructure improvement, downtown revitalization, public facilities and economic development.

Among other towns receiving awards on Thursday were the nearby communities of Carbon in Clay County and New Market in Montgomery County.

Like Van Bibber Lake, each received $700,000 for water system improvements.