Georgiana gets water grant

BY BRUCE BRANUM

The Greenville Standard

 

Georgiana Mayor Jerome Antone recently announced the City of Georgiana has received a USDA grant worth $321,000 for the replacement on water lines.

With the funds, Georgiana will be replacing old galvanized water lines in the downtown area.

Specifically the work will begin on Mill Street and will continue to Railroad Avenue.

Antone said the grants are necessary to fund the needed infrastructure replacement. “We don’t get a lot of tax dollars, so we’ve got work on those grants to help us,” said Antone.

The project is expected to start to begin in January after bids are received.

Bids for the project are expected to be sent out in December. After the bids are received, Antone said, “The water board has to meet and decide which bid to go with. We want to check about the quality of the bids.”

Replacement of lines will include moving existing lines to the side of the streets. “We want to move them to the sides. When there is a water problem now, you’ve got to tear up the whole road. When it’s on the side, you don’t have to tear up the whole road,” said Antone.

The grant doesn’t pay for repaving of streets but specifically covers replacement of water lines. The city will have to cover the cost of repaving.

Antone indicated the projected is a continuation of infrastructure replacement in Georgiana.

“We started with the sewer plant. We invested over a million dollars to get it up to par,” said Antone.

He added “You can get different grants like the one for the plant, the water grant or infrastructure grants. These things can cost millions of dollars.

“We’re trying to get these things done in Georgiana. These things serve the whole community. You have to get those things done before you get anything else done.”

According to Antone, Georgiana is applying for a second grant to replace more aging water lines.

“It’s a safety thing and we know that when pipes burst it wastes water and damages roads,” Antone said.