La Plata leaps next hurdle in fixing sewage overflow

Federal stimulus funds go to Willow Lane pump station

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

The La Plata Town Council adopted a resolution June 23 to award a $223,000 contract to McCrone Inc. to finalize the engineering and prepare a bid to solicit a company to do the project during a regularly scheduled meeting at town hall. The project is being funded with federal stimulus money in the form of a low-interest loan from the Maryland Department of the Environment, said Mayor Roy Hale.

The final cost of the project has not been determined yet, Hale said, adding that it includes replacing the old sewage pump station on Willow Lane and running a new sewer line from the pump station to the town's wastewater treatment plant on Curley Hall Road.

Since the pump station will serve the proposed Heritage Green mixed-use community to be built off Rosewick Road, the council last month discussed the establishment of a special taxing district on the 1,000-acre parcel. By creating the district, the council could levy a special rate on the property owners in Heritage Green to collect the money spent on the Willow Lane project to pay back the stimulus loan, said Keenan Rice, president of MuniCap Inc., during a recent council work session. The tax would vary based on the type of residential unit or commercial property, Rice said.

The tax would be added to a property owner's yearly property tax bills, Rice said.

The town would be given a lien against the property in the event that the tax is not paid, Rice said.

Harry Lapas, the developer of Heritage Green, agreed to the establishment of the district during the work session.

Fixing the sewage overflow problem at the pump station is long overdue, Hale said.

"This has been a project that the town has wanted to do for quite some time," he said, adding that La Plata is under a MDE consent decree to try to finish the project by Dec. 31. "We want to complete it as quickly as possible."

"I'm glad that we're moving ahead with it," said Ward 4 Councilman Joe Norris.

Ward 1 Councilman Wayne Winkler said that the Willow Lane situation was a problem when he served on the council several years ago.

"This has been a long process," he said.

"The sewer lines didn't get broken overnight so they're not going to be fixed overnight, either. This is a major step that needs to happen to get things under control over there. Willow Lane has been a major issue in town that has been going on for years."

"We're on track to improve this part of our wastewater treatment system," Hale said. "This project is timely and beneficial for our residents and I'm glad that we can get started on the project."

nmcconaty@somdnews.com