While there are a number of water and sewer infrastructure projects planned for Ridgeland, several will be completed in the coming years due to the American Rescue Plan Act funds.
The city of Ridgeland was allocated $5.9 million from the American Rescue Plan, a federal COVID-19 relief package, and will use it on three projects which consist of a new water well and sewer interception lines. The city has a list of projects ordered by priority that need to be completed. The projects selected to receive the funds were the highest priority.
“The projects will improve the quality of life of our citizens and will protect our environment,” Ridgeland’s Mayor Gene McGee said.
The first project scheduled to be started is a new water well at the Hardy Road site. It will replace the current well, which is a regulatory problem. The current well doesn’t meet the regulations in three areas.
It contains a high amount of organic content, otherwise known as brown water. The well exceeds maximum contaminant level for chlorine byproducts. It also received a notice of a violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act. This new well was listed as top priority in water and sewer infrastructure projects for Ridgeland. The well will cost $715,000 and serve 24,000 Ridgeland residents.
“It is going to give us an additional source of high quality drinking water,” City Clerk Paula Tierce said.
The remaining funds will be used for two sewer interception lines. The first is in the LaRue Creek Basin in the Western Service Area and will run 6,200 feet from Green’s Crossing Road to Wrenfield Subdivision. It will extend the current sanitary sewer gravity flow collection system and eliminate aging septic systems for 30 homes. This will create a safer environment by eliminating violations. One of the current violations is that overflow is resulting in raw sewer flowing into roadside ditches. This will cost $1,440,000.
“Sewer interceptor lines are to get citizens on sanitary sewer and off septic tanks,” McGee said.
The third project is also a sewer interception line that will eliminate sewer septic systems for 120 homes. It is much larger, running 23,900 feet from Green’s Crossing Road to Natchez Trace Parkway. This line will cost $2,840,000.
McGee said although the projects would have eventually happened, it would not have been for a long time if not for the American Rescue Fund Act.
“It would take many more years to save enough money to get the work done,” McGee said.
There are 12 additional water and sewer projects waiting to be started in Ridgeland as soon as the funds become available. The total cost of the 15 projects is estimated to be $32,722,100.
McGee said he anticipated these first three funded projects to take between two to four years if all goes well. Tierce said the design for the well is currently being put together, and bidding for the projects is also taking place. She said they hope to have started the well at the first of the year and the interception lines will be begun upon the well’s completion.
