Washington County Completes Water Project After 20 Years

Two decades of work has brought public running water to more than 700 people in Washington County's southeast corner.

The last customers covered by the Southeast Water Project turned on their taps April 14, about 21 years after project plans were first drawn. Surface cleanup of some pipe-laying sites remains, as do refund checks for several people who signed up for water but weren't part of the project.

At A Glance

Southeast Water Project Phase II

The project’s second phase is now providing piped water to about 415 residents in Washington County’s Brentwood, Hazel Valley, Parker Branch Road, Sunset, Whitehouse Road and Wyola communities and Madison County’s Brannon Mount Road.

Source: Washington Water Authority

Josh Moore, who manages the Washington Water Authority that oversees county utility service, said everything should be wrapped up by June. The water authority is part of the county's larger Rural Development Authority.

"I'm glad to be at the end," Moore said. "We've got some areas where we don't have water currently, some pockets, and we may look at those. We've got plenty to do in terms of upgrading current systems."

The full project cost about $17 million. It laid about 75 miles of pipes to unincorporated streets and communities like Wyola and Hazel Valley, stretching into a sliver of Madison County.

Most of the cost was covered by state and federal grants and loans, which will cost about $5,000 a month.

Construction was split into two phases, with the first completed in 2008. Weather, geography and gaps in those grants have long delayed the overall project.

"I just want to thank the people in the area where it's gone in, thank them for being patient and for being understanding," said County Judge Marilyn Edwards. "Needless to say, I'm very thrilled. That was one of the projects when I came in that was very dear to me."

About 415 customers will get Beaver Lake water with the completion of phase 2. They must connect to the main lines on their own.

"We got the OK, now we're going to be working on it this weekend," Pat Simmons, who lives on Hazel Valley Road, said Wednesday. "It's pretty well reliable. I think it should be OK."

Before the public water, Simmons' family drew water from a spring, relying on five 1,500-gallon tanks for the summer months. Laundry was done in town, Simmons added, while rainwater was used for a shower in the barn.

"It's just something you have to deal with," she said, noting many neighbors had to haul water. "You have to adapt."

Residents on dozens of other streets, including some stretches of Hazel Valley, remain without water. County officials have said there are too few people living along many roads, which made reaching those customers unfeasible with limited grant money. Moore said previously he doesn't know the exact number of people affected.

"They failed miserably as far as the family is concerned, the people out here on Miller Road," Alyson Miller, an outspoken resident without public water, said in January. "To me they lied."

The Millers and others paid $450 for the opportunity to connect to a county line. Their refunds are among the last matters to be cleared up, which Moore said will happen by June.

Expanding the system is unlikely for now, Moore and Edwards said.

"I know there's a few pockets out there of people who didn't get any water, but I know we have those all around Washington County," Edwards said. "Right now I don't have any plans, but if any money becomes available, I'll be the first in line trying to get it."

The water authority purchases water from the Benton-Washington County Water Association, often dubbed Two-Ton.

NW News on 04/21/2014

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