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All of the main pipe has been laid for Hounsfields Water District 5 a key milestone for a project that is expected to facilitate economic development near Watertown International Airport.
The project has been under way since May. All of the main lines were installed by last week.
Rachel E. Bernat, a civil engineer at Bernier, Carr & Associates, Watertown, said that on Tuesday the company sent paperwork to the state Department of Health to approve the final piece of piping. She said the approval could be cleared within a day or so.
Im thrilled to death, said town Supervisor Timothy W. Scee. Its been our project in the works for years.
The district, with 31,259 feet of pipe, serves the airport area along with portions of Foster Park Road, Route 12F, Route 180 and Route 3.
Mr. Scee said about 80 to 90 users have been hooked up so far. Residents are not required to use municipal water, he said, and a small number have decided to opt out of receiving water from the district.
Ms. Bernat said the final pieces of work to be done include connecting about 10 houses and making the connections at the airport. Final renovations are wrapping up at the districts well house, she said. Substantial completion of the project still is scheduled for March.
Mr. Scee said he had received calls from people interested in development in the airport area because of the soon-to-be-implemented infrastructure.
This is a positive move for the town and for the region, he said.
Mr. Scee noted that for the final portion of flushing work, water from the village of Brownville was used. Councilman Stephen H. Lee said Brownville water was used instead of water from Sackets Harbor, the towns normal supplier, because of its proximity to the work being done.
The cost for Brownvilles water was $3.50 per 1,000 gallons, cheaper than the $4 charged by Sackets Harbor. Altogether, Mr. Lee said, 30,000 gallons were supplied by Brownville and approximately 200,000 gallons were supplied by Sackets Harbor for the project.
All the costs for the flushing work are being paid for by the main contractor for the project, W.D. Malone Trucking & Excavating, Hannibal. In April, the company received a $3,638,340 contract to install the pipelines.