The Marshall County Regional Sewer District members continue preparations to begin a sewer project.
They continued discussions with Jones, Petrie and Rafinski (JPR) Engineer Ken Jones, Sr. who said the initiating project that affects about 630 residents in the Lake Latonka, Mill Pond and Lawrence Lake areas would be a good project to begin out of the 13 project areas proposed.
Jones said the Preliminary Engineering report has already been submitted and the plan is to trim down that report specific to this first project. A Qualifying Engineering Report to get the project ready for funding will be one of the next steps, along with necessary pre-construction studies and aerial photography and mapping. Once paperwork is prepared, the public will be able to view documents at the Public Library and a public hearing will be held to take comments prior to a possible public hearing date in February.
The Sewer District members could look into funding the first project with a U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development grant, or a State Revolving Fund Loan through the Indiana Finance Authority, or a combination of both, depending on what the District’s financial advisor, Baker Tilly, recommends. Applications will need to be filed in the next few months.
Jones said a project could be in line to go to construction in late 2024 or in 2025. More details will be determined in a future meeting. Baker Tilly will also do analysis of rates for homeowners as the project gets underway and several scenarios will be researched.
Jones said residents can keep informed of current documents online. (https://www.jpr1source.com/resources/marshall-county-rsd) There are plans to have documents available on the county’s website.
Meanwhile, the District Board members approved the membership of an Insurance Committee with members Tom McFarland, Don Ecker Jr., and Brenda Meyer.
The next meeting of the Marshall County Regional Sewer District will be Wednesday, December 13 at 6 p.m. ET in the second floor meeting room (Room 203) in the Marshall County Building at 112 W. Jefferson Street in Plymouth.
