Southwestern water to seek bids on Dunkard Valley project
The Southwestern Pennsylvania Water Authority is soliciting bids for a project that will possibly enable it to upgrade and acquire the antiquated Dunkard Valley Joint Municipal Authority water system.
The project, which has been discussed for about the last three years, will have Dunkard Valley, an older water system serving about 500 customers in the Greensboro area, merge with Southwestern, a much larger authority providing service throughout Greene County.
Southwestern received a funding package for the project in April from the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority, PENNVEST, that came in the form of a $10.6 million low-interest loan and $5.1 million grant. The money would be used to extend a line to connect the two systems, built a new water tank and rehabilitate Dunkard Valley’s old water lines.
The authorities, which had hoped a higher percentage of the funding would come in the form of a grant, are now considering options to make the project feasible, said Tim Faddis, manager of Southwestern Pennsylvania Water Authority.
It was decided Southwestern would seek bids for the work and then see where the project stands, he said.
“We’ll see how the bids come in, then Dunkard Valley and our board will sit down and see if we can move forward with the project, if it’s feasible to move forward with the project,” Faddis said.
The costs of any debt service on the project will have to remain at a level that is reasonable for Dunkard Valley ratepayers, Faddis said. Initially, ratepayers of Dunkard Valley would pay a $20 surcharge on their monthly water bills to help repay the PENNVEST loan.
The authorities have been exploring other options for funding the project, including seeking other grants and possibly additional monetary commitments from the county and municipalities. Southwestern also is considering using its own workforce to extend a portion of the line to save money, Faddis said.
“It looks pretty good at the moment,” Faddis said. “We’re just keeping our fingers crossed to see how the bids come back.”
The project has received the support of the county and the municipalities, as well as state Rep. Pam Snyder, D-Jefferson, and state Sen. Camera Bartolotta, R-Carroll, said Charles Mallory, chairman of the Dunkard Valley board.
“We’re still hopeful this will work and go through,” Mallory said. “Everything is still slightly up in the air until we get the bids, but we have some options and we’re working on them.”
Bids for the project are expected to be advertised by Southwestern in time to permit the authority to review them in August or September, Faddis said.
“We’ll know more then,” he said.
Dunkard Valley serves customers in the Greensboro, Glassworks, Penn Pitt, Cabbage Flats and Mapletown areas. Many of its distribution lines date to the system’s construction in the 1940s and have been plagued in recent years by leaks. With its small rate base, the authority doesn’t have the resources to make improvements without increasing rates beyond what its customers can afford.
Southwestern serves about 14,000 customers in Greene, Washington and Fayette counties.