JOHNSTOWN —
In a borough with a budget barely topping $140,000, a multimillion-dollar sewer project is daunting.
But Franklin Borough’s fortunes improved dramatically Wednesday as state officials announced a $2.8 million grant that is expected to pay for the sewer fix in full.
“It all worked out perfectly,” said Richard McNulty, Borough Council president. “The people of Franklin Borough ought to be very pleased that we got this.”
Franklin, like all communities in the Johnstown Regional Sewage system, has been ordered by state regulators to remove “inflow and infiltration” – large amounts of surface water that is overloading sewer lines.
Preliminary work, including mapping, inspections and dye testing, is complete.
Ebensburg-based L.R. Kimball, the borough’s engineer, previously had assisted Franklin in obtaining more than $400,000 in state grants.
But the $2.8 million grant, announced by the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority, plays a critical role in moving the project forward.
Sewer repairs are expected to begin this summer and extend into 2012, said Cameron Mock, a Kimball project manager.
“We’re going to replace a large portion of the sanitary-sewer lines and manholes in the residential portion of the borough,” Mock said.
The PennVEST grant, he added, “keeps it affordable for Franklin.”
Also included in Wednesday’s announcement was a $65,045 loan that may or may not be needed for the project, officials said.
McNulty, noting that paying back a large loan would have been difficult for the financially distressed borough, credited Kimball with landing the state grant.
“They’re a great outfit,” he said.
That’s not to say that Franklin residents aren’t also bearing some of the burden. As of Jan. 1, Borough Council raised its monthly sewer-maintenance fee – which is separate from Johnstown Regional Sewage’s monthly treatment charge – from $5 to $20.
Mock said proceeds from that fee are needed for flow monitoring and other follow-up work.
That cash also would be used to repay the PennVEST loan.
Additionally, the local rate hike strengthened Franklin’s grant application. State officials want to see that residents are contributing to a project, said Tanya McCoy-Caretti of L.R. Kimball.
“That made a difference in the evaluation by PennVEST,” she said.
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Franklin gets big grant for sewer project
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