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Gladwin adopts water system project plan to pursue $4 million DWSRF loan
Summary
The Gladwin City Council on May 18 adopted a five-year Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Project Planning Document targeting the city’s oldest water infrastructure, authorizing City Administrator Kimberly Hines to apply for funding and noting a potential $4,000,000 estimate, a 40-year loan term, and a possible reduced 2% interest rate.
The Gladwin City Council adopted a Project Planning Document on May 18 to pursue state revolving funds for water-system improvements, a step officials said is required to apply for Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) financing. City Administrator Kimberly Hines was designated as the authorized project representative for the application and related activities.
The planning document, prepared by Fleis & VandenBrink, lays out a five-year planning horizon that targets the oldest or most deteriorated parts of Gladwin’s drinking water distribution system. "The plan would be for five (5) years and needs to be in place to receive funding," said Larry Hummel of Fleis & VandenBrink. Hummel said the work under consideration would address lead service lines and aging mains and estimated an envelope of about $4,000,000 to cover those priorities.
Hummel told the council the likely financing structure submitted on Gladwin’s behalf would be a 40-year loan; because Gladwin qualifies as a burdened community, a reduced interest rate of about 2% could apply. City Administrator Kimberly Hines said the planning document and subsequent project approvals would be brought back to council for any binding decisions.
Council members asked technical and scheduling questions. County Commissioner Tom Winarski asked whether sanitary sewer work was included; Hummel replied that the budget would also account for street reconstruction where work occurs and that gooseneck and galvanized connections assumed to contain lead would be addressed. Mayor Sarah Kile asked whether the water fund balance of roughly $3.1 million represented cash; Treasurer Angela Bigham clarified that the figure reflects total assets and is not equivalent to available cash.
The council unanimously adopted the resolution formally approving the Project Planning Document (Alternative 4) and authorizing Hines to submit the document as the first step in applying to the State of Michigan for a DWSRF loan. The packet and comments indicate the application process could run through November before funding decisions are known.
Next steps: staff will proceed with the application process and return to council with specific project designs, cost estimates and any required approvals before construction work proceeds.
