Almost two years and $22 million later, improvements to the Independence Township water system are almost complete ? and township officials were able to celebrate during an open house at the Bay Court Park well site.
‘I’m excited,? said DPW Director Linda Richardson about the project completion. ‘There are still a few little things to finish, but we knew that. They’ll be some bugs to work out and such, but the project is basically done.?
Upgrades to the Independence water system were brought about by mandates from the Environmental Protection Agency and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. The new mandates required the township to reduce arsenic removal from 50 ppb to 10 ppb.
With the new mandates in place, the township decided to take the opportunity and also evaluate other needs in the system. A water system improvement study was done to evaluate iron removal, disinfection, additional water production and water storage.
The result was a $22 million project begun in October 2004 that included: adding four sites with arsenic and iron removal, three sites with iron removal only, 10 sites with disinfection, one new million-gallon storage facility, a new well site at Bay Court Park, a new well site in Waldon Creek, three emergency connections with Waterford Township, three pressure reducing stations, two water booster systems and additional water mains.
The most visible of the improvements is the new water tower seen while traveling along I-75. The fountain blue structure was completed around May 2005.
Another major milestone was passed in April 2005 when the workers installed the first water storage tank in the Deerwood Road area. The tank was one of several being installed across the township.
The township is paying for the $22 million project through three different accounts:
? just over $18 million is from the Drinking Water Revolving Fund, a low-interest loan program;
? as of Monday, Richardson planned to go before the board at the April 19 meeting to request bonding of another $2 million; and
? the township’s own water fund will pay the remaining balance.
During the open house, Tom Biehl, executive vice-president with Hubbell, Roth and Clark, presented plaques to several of the individuals who made the project possible. HRC is the township’s engineers who oversaw the general project.
In addition to township board members and officials, Biehl thanked the following people for their work on the project:
? Russ Williams and Craig Richardson of the DPW staff who directly interfaced with the contractors for the ongoing operation of the water system and helped bring the new system online with minimal problems.
? Waterford Township Supervisor Carl Solden and Waterford DPW Director Terry Biederman for working with the township on the three emergency connections.
? Kurt Swendsen of the Drinking Water Revolving Fund office of the MDEQ who assisted in the financing process.
? HRC Field Personnel Ken Melchio, Gene Adams, Troy Perkins and Lynn Cummins who kept the project moving.
? The many contractors who worked on the project.
To cap their open house, those in attendance were able to tour the well house and several areas of the water system improvements.