Bredesen Announces Third Round of Water and Wastewater Projects to Receive Recovery Act Funding
Monday, October 26, 2009 | 08:24am
Seven Communities, Two Water Authorities and One Utility District Receive Funding
NASHVILLE – Governor Phil Bredesen and Department of Environment and Conservation Commissioner Jim Fyke announced today that seven communities, two water authorities and one utility district have been approved to receive low-interest loans for water and wastewater infrastructure improvements. The funding comes from a combination of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and the State Revolving Fund Loan Program. Forty percent of the funding is in the form of principal forgiveness, which does not have to be repaid.
This is the third round of Recovery Act grants and loans to be approved under the State Revolving Fund program.
“The Recovery Act continues to help advance drinking water and wastewater infrastructure improvements in Tennessee that benefit public health and the environment,” said Bredesen. “The principal forgiveness provision of the Recovery Act is an important aspect of the program, allowing us to provide additional relief to local communities during difficult economic times.”
The low-interest loans and principal forgiveness are used to finance the planning, design and construction of water and wastewater facilities. Through this program, communities, utility districts and water and wastewater authorities can obtain loans with lower interest rates than most can obtain through private financing. Interest rates for the loans can vary from zero percent to market rate based on each community’s economic index.
“I am always pleased to see local governments and utility districts access this infrastructure improvement program,” said Fyke. “Investments in our drinking water and wastewater systems are vital to the health of our communities, and we look forward to working with communities to move forward with these important projects.”
For the calendar year 2009, EPA provided almost $77 million in Recovery Act funding for the State Revolving Fund Loan Program and the state was not required to provide matching funds. In order to extend Recovery Act funding to a larger group of projects, Tennessee combined it with an equal amount of funding from the existing State Revolving Fund, which by law, cannot be used for another purpose.
The funding order of projects is determined by the SRF Loan Program’s Priority Ranking Lists that rank potential projects according to the severity of their pollution and/or compliance problems or for the protection of public health. Environment and Conservation administers the Recovery Act/State Revolving Fund Loan Program in conjunction with the Tennessee Local Development Authority.
Recovery Act Wastewater Grants/Loans were announced today for the following recipients:
City of Athens (McMinn County) – Athens will receive $4.09 million for collection system expansion and sewer line rehabilitation in the areas of Mount Verd Road, as well as Interstate 75 at Exit 52. The project will be funded with a 20-year, $2.45 million loan with an interest rate of 2.39 percent and $1.64 million in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
City of Cleveland (Bradley County) – Cleveland will receive $1.36 million to expand the collection system with eight-inch diameter gravity sewer lines in the areas of Interstate 75 at Exit 20, as well as Westside Drive. The project will be funded with a 20-year, $820,000 loan with an interest rate of 2.11 percent and $540,000 in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
City of Franklin (Williamson County) – Franklin will receive $3.15 million for the expansion of recycled water distribution lines on Downs Boulevard and continuing west, as well as collection system expansion in the Boyd Mill Pike, Country Road and Simmons Ridge areas. The project will be funded with a 20-year, $1.89 million loan with an interest rate of 2.69 percent and $1.26 million in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
Town of Huntingdon (Carroll County) – Huntingdon will receive $3 million for a watershed enhancement project, collection system expansion and pump station. The project will be funded with a 20-year, $1.8 million loan with an interest rate of 1.5 percent and $1.2 million in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
City of Maryville (Blount County) – Maryville will receive $3.84 million for water meter replacements, water leak detection sensor installations and wastewater treatment plant improvements including solar-powered biosolids handling. This project will be funded with a 20-year, $2.3 million loan with an interest rate of 2.09 percent and $1.54 million in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
Metro Nashville (Davidson County) – Metro Nashville will receive $1.08 million for a collection system expansion in the Holt Road and Nolensville Historic District areas. This project will be funded with a 20-year, $650,000 loan with an interest rate of 1.62 percent and $430,000 in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
City of Munford (Tipton County) – Munford will receive $650,000 to replace the existing 50-year-old Ridgecrest pump station with a new pump station and a force main to eliminate the existing bypasses and to handle additional flows. This project will be funded with a 20-year, $400,000 loan with an interest rate of 0.91 percent and $250,000 in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
Water Authority of Dickson County (Dickson County) – The Water Authority of Dickson County will receive $2.4 million for collection system expansions into six existing Dickson residential areas currently utilizing septic tank systems. This project will be funded with a 20-year, $1.44 million loan with an interest rate of 1.51 percent and $960,000 in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
West Knox Utility District (Anderson/Knox Counties) – The West Knox Utility District will receive $3.66 million to expand the collection system into the Ball Camp Road and Northampton Commons areas. This project will be funded with a 20-year, $2.19 million loan with an interest rate of 1.5 percent and $1.47 million in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
Recovery Act Drinking Water Grants/Loans were announced today for the following recipients:
City of Franklin (Williamson County) – Franklin will receive $2.5 million for improvements to the raw water reservoir, which has been leaking. Upgrades to the water reservoir will ensure continuous reliable source water for Franklin’s drinking water treatment plant. This project will be funded with a 20-year, $1.5 million loan with an interest rate of 2.82 percent and $1 million in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
Metro Nashville (Davidson County) –Metro Nashville will receive $4.8 million for water meter replacements. This project will be funded with a 20-year, $2.9 million loan with an interest rate of 1.62 percent and $1.9 million in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
Watauga River Regional Water Authority (Carter County) –The Watauga River Regional Water Authority will receive $5 million for a new two million gallon-per-day regional water treatment plant and clear well, raw water lines, raw water pump station, water booster station and distribution lines. This project will be funded with a 20-year, $3 million loan with an interest rate of 0.60 percent and $2 million in principal forgiveness that will not have to be repaid.
Additionally, the following traditional Drinking Water Loans were announced today (traditional loans do not include Recovery Act funding or the principal forgiveness provision):
City of Maynardville (Union County) –Maynardville will receive a $200,000 increase to an existing $1.57 million, 20-year loan with an interest rate of 0.79 percent to replace existing water lines along State Route 33 from Raccoon Valley Road to State Route 61 to stop water loss.
Sewanee Utility District (Marion/Franklin Counties) – Sewanee Utility District will receive a $1.2 million increase to an existing $2.1 million, 20-year loan with an interest rate of 1.22 percent, for water treatment plant improvements and expansion from 600,000 gallons per day to 850,000 gallons per day and raw water intake improvements at Lake O’Donnell and Jackson Lake.
This is the third round of Recovery Act grants/loans to be approved under the State Revolving Fund Program. The previously announced projects can be found at http://news.tennesseeanytime.org/node/2342 and http://news.tennesseeanytime.org/node/2486.
Additional Recovery Act/State Revolving Fund loans, including principal forgiveness, will be announced as they are finalized.
Since its inception in 1987, Tennessee’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund Loan Program has awarded more than $1.08 billion in low-interest loans. Since its inception in 1996, Tennessee’s Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Loan Program has awarded more than $150 million in low-interest loans. Both programs combined award approximately $75 million annually to Tennessee’s local governments for water and wastewater infrastructure projects.
Any local government interested in the SRF Loan Program should contact the State Revolving Fund Loan Program, L&C Tower, 8th Floor, 401 Church Street, Nashville, TN 37243, or call (615) 532-0445. Information about the SRF Loan Program may be found online at www.tn.gov/environment/srf.
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