SIX COMMUNITIES AWARDED GRANTS
TO UPGRADE PUBLIC WATER AND SEWER SYSTEMS

Gov. Jim Edgar today announced $1.2 million in Community Development Assistance Program (CDAP) grants to assist Brown County, Chesterfield, East Moline, Murphysboro, Quincy and Seneca in improving local sewer and water systems and developing plans for future public facilities improvements.

"Although adequate infrastructure is a foundation for economic development, many communities lack the financial resources to make needed improvements to overloaded or unsafe water and sewer systems," the Governor said. "In some cases, communities have insufficient funds to undertake the studies that must be completed to develop plans for such improvements.

"This grant is an example of state government helping local communities help themselves. It will ensure that those six communities who are receiving the grants can begin to address their infrastructure needs now and help prepare them for the needs of the future."

CDAP grants are funded with federal block grant funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Administered by the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs (DCCA), grants are awarded to units of local government with populations of 50,000 or less that are not located within one of the six large urban counties that receive funds directly from HUD.

CDAP has numerous components designed to assist smaller and rural communities with their economic development needs. DCCA Director Jan M. Grayson said the supplemental grants were made possible by allocating unspent funds from other CDAP components.

"Although we do our best to anticipate funding needs under each component, our projections are just that — projections," Grayson said. "As we neared the close of the fiscal year, some funds remained unspent in some CDAP components. We determined that these funds could best be used to help communities address these public safety and health issues."

CDAP Public Facilities and Design Engineering grants are awarded on an annual basis to communities submitting applications for assistance. The awards to the six communities receiving grants were made based on applications submitted during the 1993 round. The maximum grant available under the Public Facilities and Design Engineering component is $400,000. At least 51 percent of the project's beneficiaries must be people with low or moderate incomes.

A list of communities receiving the supplemental grants is attached.

CDAP PUBLIC FACILITIES
AND DESIGN ENGINEERING GRANTS
SUPPLEMENTAL GRANTS

Brown County — $221,047
The grant, awarded on behalf of the Clayton-Camp Point Water Commission, will help extend water lines to 57 customers in Mt. Sterling Township in and near unincorporated Hersman, and in Cooperstown Township near unincorporated Cooperstown. Families are currently served by private wells and cisterns, many of which have tested unsatisfactory due to high levels of bacteria and chemicals.

Chesterfield — $50,000
This Macoupin County community of 230 suffers a health hazard due to untreated sewage. The grant will help fund design engineering studies necessary to enable future construction of a collection and treatment system.

East Moline — $376,175
The grant will help improve a storm sewer system in the Cottage Grove area. The area currently is prone to flooding, due to inadequate interior drainage, and also poses a health hazard from standing water creating a mosquito breeding ground.

Murphysboro — $269,000
The city will use its grant to replace aging undersized watermains with six-inch watermains, new valves and hydrants. The project, which includes areas near Logan School and Longfellow School, is expected to reduce problems from leaking and low pressure that have caused numerous boil orders and lead to inadequate fire protection.

Quincy — $140,000
Funds will be used to replace the existing sanitary sewer on Cedar Street between 22nd and 24th that serves 19 homes, a park shelter and a fire station. The sewer poses a threat to health because it is in danger of collapse, which would send raw sewage into area basements.

Seneca — $145,000
Seneca, in LaSalle County, will extend the sanitary sewer to serve the Stafford Trailer Court on the north side of the village. The court is located in an unsewered area that has a history of sewage treatment and disposal problems. The project will include construction of a lift station, sanitary sewer lines and service lines to individual homes.

August 1994 / Illinois Municipal Review / Page 7