The DeKalb Utility District Board of Commissioners Thursday adopted a resolution seeking a $500,000 Community Development Block Grant for DUD to run water line extensions to areas of the county in need. The County Commission approved the same resolution at the January meeting to make application for the grant on behalf of the DUD.
Keith Blair, DUD attorney, brought the resolution to the board’s attention during the monthly meeting of the DUD. “There is another CDBG project that has been applied for. We have a resolution that I need you to enter a motion on and to approve. It’s basically for the DUD to provide matching funds for the 2014 Community Development Block Grant application. This pertains to the Tramel Branch, Dismal to Alexandria, Oakley Road, Carter Lane, and Old Givens Hollow area. The CDBG funds are in the amount of $500,000 and the district’s (DUD) portion of matching funds would be $96,000. The resolution also references a cooperative agreement which defines the relationship between the parties on this project. It also sets forth that once the project is complete that the district (DUD) will take over the lines. It employs Goodwyn, Mills Cawood & Company as the engineers and Grassroots Planning & Consulting for all administrative services for the project,” said Blair.
The board unanimously approved the resolution.
During the January County Commission meeting Amanda Mainord of Grassroots Planning & Consulting, grant administrator, said the project will serve thirty eight households on Tramel Branch, Oakley Road, Carter Lane, Old Givens Hollow, and the Dismal to Alexandria Road.
“There are six houses left to complete the (existing) water line on Tramel Branch and that’s just a half mile left there. On Old Givens Hollow, there’s nine houses there in a mile and three tenths. The Alexandria to Dismal and the first part of Oakley Road, there’s actually thirteen houses there and that is in 2.6 miles. There is kind of a spot on Oakley Road where I call no man’s land because there is one house in a whole mile so we’re going to leave that. It’s not cost effective to run a water line to serve one person or one household. To start at the other end of Oakley Road and go on to Carter Lane, there are ten houses there and that’s just a mile and eight tenths,” said Mainord.
The county’s grant application will be through the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, which if approved would assist the DeKalb Utility District in extending water lines into these areas of the county not already served.
The DUD would be responsible for paying the grant’s local 20% matching requirement or $96,000 plus any additional funds required to complete the project.
The grant application is due by the end of February.
“We will send in the application in February. We’ll probably be notified in October (if the grant is approved). If we get the money, we’ll get started on this project,” said County Mayor Mike Foster.
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