Timberville Contracts For Church St. Work

TIMBERVILLE — Timberville is moving forward with plans to upgrade infrastructure on Church Street.

Town Council voted during a special meeting Monday to award a $492,000 contract to Momentum Earthworks of Harrisonburg for the upgrades.

An additional $100,000 has been budgeted for materials, town officials say.

If everything goes smoothly, upgrades to water and sewer lines will be complete by the end of July, Town Manager Austin Garber said.

The Church Street project was one of several council members had in mind in June when they approved a budget that included up to $1.5 million in debt for infrastructure projects.

As part of the plan, council decided to use water and sewer connection fees accrued over many years to pay off existing loans of about $220,000.

New borrowing for infrastructure improvements was set at $1.5 million because monthly payments, depending on the terms of the loan, will be about what the town was paying for the loans it retired.

Councilman Bob Blosser is looking into long-term financing possibilities, including 20-year loans through BB&T Bank and Farmers and Merchants Bank, and a loan of up to 40 years through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
In the shortterm, though, town officials plan to obtain a construction loan for a two-year period.

While the town is looking at other infrastructure upgrades, the only project other than Church Street that a decision has been made on is for a new water tank, Garber said.

The cost is estimated at $481,000, but the project hasn’t been put to bid, he said.

Once the total cost of the Church Street project and tank replacement is known, town officials will begin looking at other infrastructure upgrades.
 
Contact Jeremy Hunt at 574-6273 or jhunt@dnronline.com