Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) Loan Program

NOTICE OF PROJECT PLANNING MEETING

The City of St. Joseph will hold a public meeting on the proposed FY25 Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Program Update that includes City-wide lead service line replacements and water main replacement work on Botham Avenue for the purpose of receiving comments from interested persons.

The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. on May 13, 2024 as part of the regular City Commission Meeting located in City Hall at 700 Broad Street, St. Joseph, Michigan.

The purpose of the project is to complete lead service line replacements in order to meet the State of Michigan’s 2018 Lead and Copper Rule regulatory requirements and also to replace and increase the size of the water main on Botham Avenue in order to improve distribution system reliability and water quality.  The water main replacement is included as part of the Botham Avenue Reconstruction Project.

Project construction will involve replacement of lead services and street reconstruction.

The impacts of the proposed project are expected to be the same as recent lead service line replacement and reconstruction projects in the City of St. Joseph.

The estimated cost to user is anticipated to be, on average, $3.81/month per a typical City residential user.  However, the rate increase could be lower if the loan forgiveness in provided for the lead service line replacements as it has been in the recent past.

Copies of the plan detailing the proposed project update are available for inspection at the City of St. Joseph Engineering Department, 700 Broad Street, St. Joseph, MI 49085.

Written comments received before the meeting record is closed on May 13, 2024 at 6 pm will receive responses in the final project planning document.  Written comments should be sent to City Engineer Tim Zebell, 700 Broad Street, St. Joseph, MI 49085 (email: tzebell@sjcity.com ).

Additional Background

The City of St. Joseph has applied for Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) loan funding multiple times over the past 15+ years.  The DWSRF low interest loan program is competitive in nature in that projects submitted are scored according criteria established by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) and then ranked on a Project Priority List.  The City has qualified for funding many times in the past and taken advantage of these low interest loans to complete much needed work in the distribution system and at the Water Treatment Plant.   At times, grant funding has been distributed through this program and the City has benefited from that as well.  In order to qualify for the funding, the City is required to complete a project plan, the most recent DWSRF Project Plan was completed in 2020 and amended in 2022.  Links to copies of the plans are available in the Supplemental Information Section below.