The Mulberry Town Council met Tuesday afternoon to take a big step to improve water quality for all residents. Town Council met with an engineering company to go over the town receiving the award from SRF and a loan for the wastewater rebuild.
Tuesday, announced they will have to hold a couple meetings between now and August 3rd which is the first day the funds can be released. Tuesday was a special session. Mulberry Town Council member, Lewis Wheeler said the first reading on rate ordinance and first reading of the bond ordinance were held yesterday. There will be a public hearing at Mulberry Park building Monday, July 29th for you to give your input. They also acquired a zero percent loan for the rest from SRF. It’s a forgivable loan where after five years whatever is left on the loan would be forgiven with state funds.
Wheeler said starting soon is replacing the pump station and forced mains, replacing existing Main Street lift station, installing submersible pumps, replacement of west side station, sequential batch reactor, along with upgrades throughout the facility themselves. Officials hope this can be wrapped up over the course of two years ideally or less. This will improve pressure, color and safety of the water for the area residents.
Residents will have their rates raised for a couple years to pay back part of the bond. Officials believe that to be less than 10$ a month.
The project is 10-million dollars and the Mulberry Town Council is pitching on 1-million after the 7.7 million dollar grant. The previous and a few current board members have applied for many grants over the past three years and have been turned down on all of them until they learned they were awarded the 7.7 million dollar grant.