City Nets $1 Million Grant for Sewers
By Laura Schuler, Constitution-Tribune
Wed Feb 10, 2010

CAPTION: Steve Svec, general manager of Chillicothe Municipal Utilities, holds a plaque signifying that the city has received a $1 million grant to improve its sewer system as part of the federal stimulus package.

The city’s ongoing sewer system rehabilitation program has received a $1 million boost from a grant funded through the federal stimulus program. According to Chillicothe Municipal Utilities General Manager Steve Svec, CMU was awarded the grant in June and, after months of paperwork, actual work on the city’s aging sewer lines is poised to start.

Not only will the funds be used to improve the city’s sewer system, but it will also be used to prevent back flow from occurring and to stay in compliance with state and federal regulations.

The grant requires an equal match, Svec said, which means that CMU will be borrowing funds for the project and then repaying the loan with the money usually reserved for sewer system renovation over the next six to seven years. "Our budget is set up to spend $500,000 every three years on the sewer system," Svec said. He went on to note that the rehabilitation program on the city's century-old system started five years ago. Over the course of the program, Svec said the entire system has been cleaned and the lines have been examined by camera to discover faulty areas. Manholes have also been repaired and work on lining the sewers has begun.

Svec said the federal stimulus money will be put to good use and will fund improvements to the system which, under current budget constraints, wouldn't be achieved for another 10 years. Instead, Svec said the work will be completed by the end of 2010.