A $1 million grant awarded by Gov. Kay Ivey will improve the lives of people in the town of Newbern in Hale County by reducing a health and safety hazard.
The Community Development Block Grant will be used to provide sewer services for residents, many of whom have been depending on faulty septic tank systems and have been subjected to sewage seeping from the ground or backing up in houses. Using this proposed system, residents will have adequate and environmentally safe septic systems that will properly dispose of waste, according to town leaders.
“This is a monumental project for Newbern, involving multiple partners, which will certainly mean better living conditions for people in the town and the surrounding area,” Gov. Ivey said. “I am pleased to support this local effort to improve the quality of life for so many.”
The project will provide sewage waste disposal for more than 100 households, nine community anchor institutions – such as post offices and public buildings – and one business.
The project will involve construction of new sewer connections including septic tanks and pumps, sewer collection lines and the expansion of treatment facilities. All components of the system, except lines leading from households or businesses to the septic systems, will be the property of a local utility service created by the town council.
Multiple private and public partners are playing a part in establishing the system including several other federal funding sources, according to the grant application. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs is administering the CDBG award from funds made available by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
“This project will have a tremendous impact on the town of Newbern and surrounding area,” ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell said. “ADECA is pleased to be one of many partners involved in this endeavor, and we join Gov. Ivey in commending the community and all those involved for their efforts to make this improvement.”
Gov. Ivey notified Mayor Patrick Braxton that the funding had been approved.
ADECA manages a range of programs that support law enforcement, economic development, recreation, energy conservation and water resource management.
