The Connersville Common Council on Dec. 1 approved Resolution 2025-93, a contingent local-match commitment for a proposed water improvement grant that city staff said would target aging mains and potential lead-service lines on the north side of town.

City staff (speaker S2) told the council the city is applying for a $750,000 grant (referred to in the meeting by several spellings: "OCCA/OCCRA/Okra"). The project area identified in the presentation includes 35th Street, the Office Park area and adjoining blocks (34th/33rd Street, North Central Avenue and Iowa Avenue). Staff said the local match would principally be financed through the State Revolving Fund (SRF) loan program and quoted an approximate match figure of $2,456,625; one line in the transcript also recorded $2,526,625, creating an inconsistency in the meeting record. Staff added that approximately $70,000 was proposed from the city's water utility operating fund if the grant is awarded.

Consultant Greg (speaker S6) summarized OCCRA's on-site review and the legal-advertising requirements for the public hearing. Staff described technical drivers for prioritizing the north-side work: transite mains and other century-old infrastructure, repeated boil-water advisories, and sections of system that cannot be safely taken offline without opening multiple hydrants. "We have to open up every fire hydrant in that area to be able to fix that main live," S2 said, noting that doing so can reduce available pressure and compromise firefighting capacity.

On outreach and homeowner impact, staff said multiple notification attempts will be made — mailed notices, door-to-door follow-ups and QR-code sign-ups. Homeowners would be asked to sign right-of-entry forms to allow in-home service-line replacements; staff warned that if property owners decline during construction, the city cannot later replace the line without a new agreement.

The council recorded no public speakers during the hearing, moved and seconded the resolution, and approved it by voice vote. Staff indicated the broader federal and state requirements around lead-service-line replacement give the city a 10-year window to eliminate known lead services, and that property owners should take advantage of in-project replacement opportunities.