Two related Corunna storm water and wastewater asset management grant projects moved forward Oct. 5 when the City Council unanimously approved the C2AE engineering firm’s contracts for a total of $440,300. The approval now moves the city into position to receive approximately $1.1 million in grant monies.
On Sept. 14, 2015 Dan Wyant, director of the Michigan DEQ, sent a letter to the city stating the city’s grant application was approved and the city could proceed with creating Wastewater and Stormwater Asset Management Plans.
The letter reads, in part: “The DEQ has approved the grant for $1,030,913 and has requested the Michigan Finance Authority (MFA) to prepare a grant agreement. The city is to provide matching funds of approximately $60,000.” The city has been told to anticipate the grant award in November 2015.
Corunna City Manager Joe Sawyer explained Oct. 7 that several years ago the state established a grant program that made $90 million available for multiple years to assist communities with stormwater and wastewater projects. The city of Durand received approximately $500,000 in the first round of funding, the city of Owosso received approximately $1 million in the second round of funding and Corunna was eligible for the third round of funding.
The grants will enable the city to continue efforts started approximately 10 years ago to inspect and assess its stormwater and wastewater handling and removal infrastructure. And, some of the expenditures already made may be reimbursable.
The city plans on re-inspecting, remodeling and revising their stormwater and wastewater infrastructure and integrating and mapping that information into what Sawyer termed a Geographic Information System (GIS). The GIS will allow the community to pull up wastewater and stormwater maps in the field link inspections, repairs and replacements. “Water components will indirectly benefit as well,” Sawyer said.
Eventually Sawyer sees expanding the GIS and adding parcel mapping and to integrate public works into the system for work orders. “The GIS would help us create a citywide map for utility and parcel assets and beyond,” Sawyer said.
In December 2013 C2AE (Corunna’s engineering firm) submitted professional services agreements – one for stormwater and the other for wastewater – to provide engineering services and costs for the grant application. The proposal formed the basis for the engineering scope of services and costs for the SAW Grant Application. C2AE will receive $204,000 for its work on the Wastewater Asset Management Plan Development and $236,300 for the Stormwater Asset Management Plan Development.
Under terms of the grant the city is required to create the asset management plans within three years of the grant authorization.
