Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield, WV

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December 16, 2009

Officials optimistic about funding for water project

By CHARLES OWENS

WELCH — Area officials say they are optimistic about the federal funding chances for a proposed regional water project that could serve more than 8,000 citizens in McDowell and Wyoming counties.

A notice of intent to seek federal stimulus funding for the RD Bailey Regional Water Project has been filed with the United States Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service. The project is proposed to serve 8,273 customers in the western portion of McDowell and Wyoming counties. The project also could serve Mingo County.

“I’ve been one of the people who has worked on this project from the very beginning,” Sen. Richard Browning, D-Wyoming, said. “Right now it stands at about a $158 million project that will move water into three counties. It’s 12,000 plus total (customers) that is either going to get water for the first time or even better water. And some of these areas — without this water system — would never get water.”

Browning and other officials met Wednesday in Wyoming County to finalize the project application.

The project is proposed to take in more than 1,246 new and existing water customers in the city of Welch, and would serve another 1,209 underserved customers along U.S. Route 52, including the Panther, Isaban, Litwar, Longpole and Johnny Cake Mountain communities. The towns of Pineville and Oceana also would be served by the project, along with a number of communities in Wyoming County.

“It is a very ambitious project — none like we’ve seen in the region before,” Delegate Clif Moore, D-McDowell, said. “In McDowell County, we are looking forward to pursuing this project, and putting it on the fast track to ensure people who are without water will have an opportunity. Not only is it good for the residential population, it’s good for industry and attracting new business.”

Moore said he has a “real good feeling” about the chances of the project being approved for federal stimulus funding.

Browning said the project was conceived several years ago as just a small water project for the Hanover community. However, Browning said the “stars lined up right,” and officials were able to then propose a much larger three-county project with a goal of securing federal stimulus dollars.

“Again the money is competitive, and the quicker we get our application in the more chances we have of getting the money,” Browning said. “It’s really worked out well. We are sitting on that water at RD Bailey. And a lot of these systems have inferior water sources, such as the town of Oceana. We are going to build a huge water plant at RD Bailey, and as this water gets phased in to each locality, this will become their water system.”

Browning said officials should know by April if the project is approved for federal funding.

“I’m very optimistic,” Browning said. “We have gone through this process with a team of people. We’ve had weekly conference calls. The federal people have been great partners. We’ve had a lot of grass roots support.”

– Contact Charles Owens at cowens@bdtonline.com

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