By Patrick McCreless
Though the city of Hanceville was recently denied a state grant for much-needed sewer line repairs, a similar grant could soon be approved.
Shortly before the Hanceville City Council meeting began Thursday, Mayor Kenneth Nail said the city would not receive a $500,000, 100-percent funded grant from the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA).
“That grant was based on the amount of unemployment in a particular area,” Nail said after the meeting. “Our (Cullman County) unemployment was lower than other areas.”
Had the grant been approved, it would have been used to fund the first phase of a two-phase sewer line replacement project.
Phase I of the project includes the replacement of 3,800 feet of sewer lines, beginning at Veteran’s Park and ending at the Highway 91 and Highway 31 intersection.
Hanceville has been plagued by rain water infiltration problems for years due to old and damaged sewer lines. Officials have cited infiltration as the main cause of multiple overflow violations at the Hanceville Wastewater Treatment Plant in recent years. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) has cited the plant many times because of the violations.
Nail said the city still had a chance to fund the project with a $400,000 ADECA grant, which was applied for at the same time as the other grant.
“If the $500,000 grant was turned down, we had the other one ready to go,” Nail said.
Nail said ADECA would likely approve the second grant application since the department almost approved it last year. The project was not approved last year because it was ranked 17th on ADECA’s funding list.
“They stop funding at 16,” Nail said. “We’ve heard they’re going to start funding at 17 this year and keep going.”
Nail noted that unlike the $500,000 grant, the $400,000 grant will not be fully funded and will require a 20 percent match, which will be paid for by the Hanceville Water Board.
‰ Patrick McCreless can be reached by e-mail at patrickm@cullmantimes.com or by telephone at 734-2131 ext. 270.
