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Montgomery County EDA hears update on Falling Branch Lot 2; stormwater permit and pump station ownership undecided
Summary
EDA staff reported progress on grading and utilities at Falling Branch corporate park Lot 2, described permit and weather delays, noted a $347,265 contractor work estimate for payment application No. 8, and summarized an earlier EDA-approved pump station study sized at 25,000 gallons per day.
The Montgomery County Economic Development Authority on a construction update reported that work on Falling Branch corporate park Phase 2, Lot 2 has advanced but remains delayed by winter weather and a pending stormwater permit revision.
EDA staff said Main Street Builders finished the water line in late February and that the contractor’s recent work for payment application No. 8 totaled about $347,265. Staff said permit processing and repeated weather days have pushed the schedule: a 45-day permit review plus 78 weather days were counted in the project’s timeline. Staff previously estimated a “substantial completion” date in mid-May but also noted an objective to complete initial reviews by March 26 for certain work elements.
The update said the stormwater permit must be revised because topsoil storage is proposed outside the current limits of disturbance; that change will increase disturbed acreage and trigger additional review by the Town of Christiansburg and potentially by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Staff described differences in how localities interpret stormwater limits of disturbance and said staying within the existing disturbed acreage would avoid a full DEQ plan review.
Staff also summarized an EDA-approved pump station study from the December meeting. The study, approved for $62,000, sized a pump station at 25,000 gallons per day intended to serve nonindustrial (domestic) flows for a single occupant. The presentation said FedEx has an existing easement that would allow a connection through its property.
Ownership of the pump station remains unsettled. Staff said the EDA might end up owning the pump station if it serves only a single industry, but the Town of Christiansburg has expressed reservations about taking ownership of a facility built for one user. Staff said the preferred approach is for the building owner to construct the pump station and for the EDA to maintain the portion of the line that crosses EDA property if needed.
Project graphics shown to the board depicted the water line alignment, road layout and a roughly delineated pad area; staff said topsoil storage and a small additional pipe (a change order) will be required to span an existing ditch before mounding topsoil. The presentation emphasized that improved weather and drying soils would help keep the schedule on track.
The EDA discussion included questions about long-term maintenance and backup power costs for pump stations, and staff cautioned that a full-size pump station suitable for large residential development would carry significantly higher costs.
The EDA did not take a new formal action on Lot 2 construction during the update; staff said they will follow up with the Town of Christiansburg on permit timing and with the contractor on outstanding change orders and payment requests.
Looking ahead, staff said resolving the stormwater permit and the pump station ownership/maintenance questions are the next steps before finalizing the construction schedule.
