Charlottesville council hears timeline, costs and community outreach plan for central waterline project

City staff and project contractors told the Charlottesville City Council on Aug. 4 that construction on a multi‑phase central waterline project is expected to begin in October and will run for several years, with Phase 1 scheduled to last about four years. The project will install approximately five miles of 24‑inch and 30‑inch drinking water pipe through the city; Phase 1 alone is roughly four miles and carries an estimated construction budget of about $58 million. Bill Moyer, identified in the meeting as representing project authorities, said the total program of related water supply projects across the city and county is expected to total roughly $275 million, with the city utility department responsible for about 48 percent of Phase 1 costs and the Albemarle County Service Authority responsible for about 52 percent. The project’s stated purpose is to increase conveyance capacity between the Observatory Mountain Water Treatment Plant…