BY MARK J. CRAWFORD
Telegraph Editor
Construction of sewer system improvements recently moved from a Washington Street project near the high school to Weldon Street off State Road 16.
The work will continue to and then down Todd Road, according to City Manager Drew Mullins. Work will follow over on State Road 100 and near Alligator Creek.
Mullins said “decrepit” lines are being relined, repaired or replaced.
He further said the city would coordinate with the school district and contractor on the time frame for resurfacing Washington Street following the latest repairs.
From reconstruction at the sewer plan to the replacement and revitalization of water and wastewater collection lines, the city has multiple projects in various stages of development and execution. The funding sources, including grants and loans, are coming from several different pots. The city manager and finance department are working on a detailed compilation to help keep track.
Among the latest awards was $2.5 million from the state of Florida for the wastewater collection system improvement project. The funding was part of $210 million package awarded to multiple communities through the Water Quality Improvement Grant Program.
The grant funded 27 statewide projects that will reduce harmful nutrients in Florida’s waterways. The awards include septic-to-sewer projects, wastewater treatment upgrades, stormwater projects, wastewater improvement projects and a regional agricultural project.
According to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the selected projects will reduce total nitrogen loading by more than 1 million cumulative pounds per year, which will help to reduce harmful algal blooms.
The additional funding was critical for Starke. According to Mullins, the collection system improvements taking place are part of a project that included moving and upgrading the Call Street lift station and making SCADA security and control improvements. When bids were received for the package, the lowest was around $2 million more than the original budget, which was already over $5 million. The city needed the additional grant funding to cover the difference.
As of its last meeting, the city of Starke is also seeking additional funding front the State Revolving Fund Loan Program to pay for compliance with revisions in lead and copper service line rules for public water systems. The commission also approved an agreement with Woodward and Curan for engineers to prepare an inventory of waters lines that need to be addressed. The five-phase project will cover service line inventory through the development of the replacement plan at a projected cost of $417,000 over 12 months.
Engineers will also be working on a vulnerability assessment for the city to determine concerns resulting from climate change. Vulnerabilities include increased rainfall and flooding. The eight-month project has a budget of $114,000. Starke was recently awarded funds from the Resilient Florida Program Planning Grant for the project.
Other projects the state funded in north Florida through the Water Quality Improvement Grant Program included $1.1 million for Alachua County’s Newnans Lake system hydrologic restoration project; $1.1 million for a septic-to-sewer project on County Road 236 in High Springs; more than $1 million for a second phase of High Springs’ wastewater treatment facility expansion and wetlands project; $2.56 million for a septi-to-sewer and reuse project in Live Oak; and $5 million for Suwannee River Water Management District’s Agriculture Regional Water Quality Initiative.
