Lincoln Park Mayor Thomas Karnes
By SUE SUCHYTA
Sunday Times Newspapers
LINCOLN PARK – Federal pandemic stimulus funding may help Lincoln Park finance some of its much-needed water infrastructure projects, Mayor Thomas Karnes said at the March 15 City Council meeting.
“The COVID relief bill, the stimulus package that the president signed into law, and we were pleased to see that, from that bill, we are due to receive some $20 million toward infrastructure,” he said.
“We don’t know exactly what the stipulations for how these monies can be spend, and we will be taking a strong look at that, but it will definitely help towards the issues that we have with our water system and with our roads.”
Karnes said it was a shame that the pandemic had to happen for the city to get federal funds for infrastructure, but he is thankful that the city will receive the much-needed aid.
The council approved engineering design services from Hennessey Engineering, not to exceed $60,500, to prepare a water infrastructure project plan prior to applying for a Water Infrastructure Financing Section low-interest loan, which requires that a plan be developed and submitted to Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy to be considered.
John Kozuh, Lincoln Park Department of Public Services director
The first round of the WIFS loan is to cover the first five years of the city’s 20-year sanitary system capital improvement plan. The initial five-year plan would cost approximately $15.5 million, with a 2 to 2.5 percent interest rate.
The city’s Emmons and Lincoln pump stations would be improved, with electrical, controls, heat-ventilation-air conditioning, pump replacement and a pump station addition for the control center.
The sanitary sewer lines that were investigated in 2019 with the Stormwater, Asset Management and Wastewater grant program cleaning and televising would be addressed with complete cured-in-place pipe-lining.
Concrete improvements would be performed on the retention basin cell floor and walls, and a sodium hydrochloric metering pump, used to break down viscous fluids, like sludge and slurries, would be replaced.
Sewage districts identified as critical would be cleaned, televised, smoke tested and flow monitored.
Upon approval of the WIFS project plan, Hennessey Engineering would then provide the city with a proposal for preparing the final detailed engineering and specifications for the infrastructure work.