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East Moore Water District moves to apply for USDA funding to extend waterlines in northeastern Moore County
Summary
The East Moore Water District board voted to pursue a USDA-funded engineering and environmental review for an Eastmoor Phase 5 petition covering Wadsworth, Manor and adjacent roads; staff estimated $4–5 million and about 12 miles of pipe, and noted 35 petition signatures.
The East Moore Water District board voted to pursue further study and an application to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s rural water program for a petition-driven extension commonly called "Eastmoor Phase 5." Public Works Director Brian Patnode presented the petition, which covers roads north of Carthage and toward Lee County, and shared a mapping and preliminary cost estimate.
Patnode told the board staff found 35 petition signatures on the Wadsworth petition and that earlier requests in the same area had come from Red Branch, McCrimmon, Kelly and Old River roads (SEG 064–086, SEG 079–085). A preliminary cost estimate for the proposed scope is roughly $4–5 million to place about 12 miles of pipe; staff said these are high-level figures and that a formal application would include a preliminary engineering report and environmental assessment that typically take six to eight months (SEG 098–101, SEG 125–133).
Commissioners and board members discussed proximity to Carthage’s water system, land‑use implications and concerns about encouraging unplanned development; one commissioner asked staff to overlay the proposed district on the county’s land‑use/zoning maps but said that the need of residents should not be delayed by planning work (SEG 193–236). Staff said the usual USDA financing approach works best with roughly 10 customers per mile, and the mapping shows about 14 customers per mile for the proposed alignments (SEG 112–119).
The board voted to move forward with the application process, authorize staff to issue an RFQ for engineering services, and pursue preliminary engineering and environmental review necessary for a USDA application (motion restated and passed SEG 369–382). Board members asked staff to return with more precise engineering and budget estimates once an engineer is selected.
Why it matters: The extension would bring public water to households relying on private wells in a rural part of Moore County and could improve water quality and household resilience; it also raises land‑use and growth-management tradeoffs.
Quote: "We have 35 signatures... we're looking at about 4 to $5,000,000 and that would be 12 miles of pipe," Brian Patnode said when summarizing the preliminary petition and cost estimate.
Next steps: Staff will release an RFQ for engineering, prepare the preliminary engineering report and environmental assessment for a USDA application, and return with detailed maps and a refined cost estimate.
