Jackson council adopts final plan to seek $20M in federal grant funding for lead service replacement

The Jackson City Council voted unanimously to adopt a final project plan to apply for Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) funding, a step that lets the city seek a mix of grants and loans to replace lead service lines and make upgrades at the water treatment plant and across the distribution system.

City staff and consultant Colin McCorkle of Fishback presented the plan during a council meeting public hearing, describing a multi-year package of projects that includes large-scale lead service-line replacement, roughly 11,600 linear feet of small-diameter water main replacement, a blast-and-coat for the East elevated storage tank, and several water-treatment-plant repairs and equipment replacements. "This is the last year that we can get BIL grant money," McCorkle told council, referring to Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds that have increased available SRF grant support for lead-line work.

The plan lists a portfolio of projects and cost estimates: about $20 million of the plan is for lead-service-line replacement (the speaker described applying for $20 million with the hope $10 million would…