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PARKERSBURG -- The Parkersburg Utility Board on Wednesday approved an agreement to update its water system engineering report, which could be used to apply for funding for future capital projects.
The board voted 3-0, with two members absent, to approve the agreement with Parkersburg-based Burgess & Niple, which prepared the original report in 1998 and has updated it twice since then. The cost of the planned update is $98,000.
That will include a review of the water treatment plant, where replacement of pumps and work on the sediment basin incorporated from the previous water plant could be on the horizon, utility Manager Eric Bennett said. Also under consideration are efforts to increase pressure at higher elevations in south Parkersburg.
Burgess & Niple project engineer Craig Richards said the plan can be used when applying for state loans to pay for projects from sources like the West Virginia Jobs and Infrastructure Council, which provided the loan for the recently completed $12.8 million wastewater treatment plant upgrade.
Board member Paul Hoblitzell asked how much state funding is available, and Richards said it depends on the source. The Mineral Wells Public Service District recently received preliminary approval for funds for a capital improvement project from the West Virginia Bureau of Public Health's Drinking Water Treatment Revolving Fund after originally seeking it from the Jobs and Infrastructure Council.
"There is money still available through that (drinking water) program, which you guys have gotten before," Richards said.
The board met in executive session to continue discussing restoration and reimbursement for lost income at the Worthington Golf Course after a sewer line rehabilitation project there, but no action was taken.
The board was short two members Wednesday but could be back up to full strength the next time it meets. Parkersburg City Council on Tuesday approved the appointment of Robert Wright to the board to fill the vacancy created when Edward Glasser passed away earlier this year.
Parkersburg Mayor Tom Joyce, the utility board chairman, said Wright was absent due to a previously scheduled activity. Board member Greg Herrick also was absent.