By REVIS BLAYLOCK
NEA Town Courier
A new water well project for the city of Manila is nearing, according to Mayor Tracey Reinhart. The project is something city officials have been working on for some time.
“We did get accepted for a low interest (1.75 percent) from ANRC,” Mayor Reinhart said. “Bids will be opened at 11 a.m. July 25 and we are hoping the work can be started in the fall.”
The loan is for $958,250. Mayor Reinhart emphasized the city has a good working well. For years, the city has had a back up well but it went down several years ago. If something happened to the running well, the city could purchase water from Buffalo Island Water.
“A back-up well is needed in case of an emergency,” Mayor Reinhart said.
The new well will be placed adjacent to the present one on property acquired by the city.
City officials put a moratorium on the construction of apartments until the well project is complete and zoning issues can be looked into.
“I do appreciate the patience of our builders,” Mayor Reinhart said. “We will have to have apartments in the future to continue our growth.”
The city also received two recent grants from the county and Mayor Reinhart expressed his gratitude to the county for their assistance.
A $200,000 grant will be used in the renovations of the water tower.
“It is time to do the necessary service work on the 300,000 gallon tower,” Reinhart said. “It will be sanded and recoated inside, sandblasted and painted back white. Any needed repairs found during the inspection will be fixed. The lettering, “Manila, Home of the Lions,” will remain.
The estimated cost of the tower project is $284,000. The city pays the balance over the county grant.
Mayor Reinhart is also looking into a second water tower project of putting the old one back in service as a backup. It is small, a 50,000 gallon tank but it could be beneficial to the city if for some reason, the main tower had to be shut down. That would be an additional project.
Mayor Reinhart said the$158,000 county grant the city received is a great asset in the fire department expansion project. New bays were built to house the growing equipment. The grant money will be used to help with the garage doors and parking lot to help get the equipment in and out of the bays.
It was estimated that to complete the project the cost will be about $250,000.
“The country grant will certainly help,” Mayor Reinhart said. “Manila has received $358,000 in grants from the county this year. We really appreciate it.”