Brandon Twp.- Local officials continue to investigate the possibility of partnering with Genesee County for sewers.
Representatives from communities including the townships of Atlas, Brandon, Davison and Grand Blanc, as well as the villages of Goodrich and Ortonville, met with representatives of the Genesee County Water and Waste Services and the Oakland County Drain Commissioner’s Office at an informational meeting on April 19 at the Brandon Township offices, 395 Mill St.
The meeting was convened to discuss interest in a sanitary sewer interceptor, a large underground pipe that would collect wastewater and take it to a treatment plant, as opposed to septic fields. An interceptor could be used in Kearsley Creek to service the east branch, which would go to Brandon Township and Ortonville, or the west branch, going to Grand Blanc, Groveland Township and Holly. Both branches could be served if there is enough interest from the communities invited to participate.
A concern raised at the meeting by both Brandon Township Supervisor Ron Lapp and Ortonville Village Manager Ed Coy was the issue of time.
‘Ortonville is on a faster track than what you can offer,? Lapp said to John O’Brien, director of the Division of Water and Waste Services for Genesee County.
O’Brien had given an optimum time of 12-18 months for design and another 24 months for building the interceptor. However, Phil Sanzica, chief engineer for the Oakland County Drain Commission, noted that the Army Corps of Engineers ‘moves slower? on projects, with a typical project taking about 7 years to finish.
‘From a village standpoint… the money is important, but so is time,? said Coy. ‘The village can’t wait that long.?
About 50 people were in attendance at the meeting, which was open to the public, but at which citizens? input was not taken as it was strictly informational.
A similar proposal on an interceptor was offered about five years ago by Genesee County to the same communities, but failed due to a lack of interest. At that time, the project was estimated to cost $22 million for design and construction.
The cost for design of the system this time around would be covered for at least one of the branches by a $1.4 million grant from the Army Corps of Engineers. Genesee County is also expecting another $600,000 in grant money.
Phil Sanzica, chief engineer for the Oakland County Drain Commission, also cited at the meeting a new state revolving fund called the Michigan Water Pollution Control Revolving Loan Program. The program is a low interest (1.625 percent) loan financing program that assists qualified local municipalities with the construction of needed water pollution control facilities. Sanzica says the state has also come up with a separate program to provide a grant for the planning and engineering costs. The grant provides 90-percent funding for the design cost of a project, up to $1 million.
These potential funding options are in addition to a $2 million State and Tribal Assistance Grant currently being sought for Ortonville by Congressman Mike Rogers and the Oakland County Drain Commissioner’s Office from the Interior Appropriations Subcomittee.
The funding could be used in a joint venture with Genesee County or in Ortonville’s other option for sewers? building a stand alone wastewater treatment plant.
‘I need a commitment before I bid the project,? said O’Brien. ‘If there are no commitments, it will be put on the shelf for a later date.?
The east branch and west branch communities will meet separately with O’Brien in May after getting reu’s? residential equivalent units, or the number of units in each community that need sewer service. A typical home would count as one unit. A school would be about 20 units, said Atlas Township Planning Commissioner Rick Misek.
From those numbers, the pipe size needed will be determined and from that, an estimated cost for the system can be figured.
The village and Brandon Township have about 3,500 residential equivalent units combined in need of sewer service, said Lapp.
Atlas Township Supervisor Paul Amman said he remains uninterested in subsidizing sewers.
Speaking after the meeting, Atlas Township Planning Commissioner Rick Misek said, ‘This is not the solution, it’s not viable economically and environmentally…Municipal sewers are required in cities and dense suburbia, but do not stick them in agricultural areas. They don’t pay for themselves. Ortonville is proceeding in the right direction to do their own stand alone treatment plant. They can use it to serve their current needs and the future expansion of business in the village and they can estimate the capacity to their desired level.?
Coy says the village is planning to move ahead with their current plans for a stand-alone treatment plan, unless someone shows them a better solution.
‘The village will purchase land from the township, perhaps,? he said. ‘We need four to five acres of usable land for a waste water treatment plant. We’re working on the best deal for the folks in the village, both time and money-wise.?