COCHRANTON — The first round of tap-ins to Cochranton’s new sewage processing system is set to begin, and some 40 to 50 residential customers have already stopped by the borough office to fill out work permits and pay tap-in fees, officials said Tuesday.
At a borough council meeting Monday night, it was confirmed that the first of three sets of notices have been mailed, and work now can begin for a “first group,” said Borough Manager Fran McClain.
Group 1 includes some 200 of approximately 650 paid connections to the $9.5 million system, which was mandated by the DEP in 2000.
The first group’s territory covers a portion of the borough south of the main red-light intersection, toward Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church. Notices for group 2, north of the main intersection, will be mailed about Oct. 2; and property owners for the center of the borough will be notified about Oct. 23, McClain said.
Property owners will have up to 90 days to connect to the system after receiving the notice. The tap-in fee for the system stands at $1,000, and incremental payments will not be accepted. The mandatory fees are being collected to pay back a $7.5 million loan for the project from the state funding agency PENNVEST and to cover initial operating costs, officials previously said. Numerous grants have also been received to help pay for various aspects of the project.
Residents have been advised to hire only borough-approved contractors for the mandatory line and tap-in work. Approximately 35 area individuals and firms are on a list of insured contractors that property owners may hire. That list is available at the borough office.
The system will serve a population of approximately 1,100, and borough officials anticipate having about 650 paid connections to the system.
Earlier, Community Development Block Grant funding was approved to help qualified residents who need assistance with costs to connect to the system. However, that money has not yet arrived from Crawford County officials, McClain said Tuesday, so those residents will not be notified and cannot move forward until the funding is in place. The same situation will occur in the other two groups, and notices will not be sent to some of those properties until the grant money is secured. About 115 income-eligible families will receive CDBG assistance, Amy Schmidt, grant administrator for the county planning office, said in previous reports.
In other business at Monday’s meeting, the borough will advertise for a new communitywide garbage-removal contract, seeking a three-year agreement. Tri-County Industries of Grove City is the current waste hauler for the borough.
