Friday March 29th, 2024 6:58AM

Potential customer spurs Demorest plans for sewer service on Ga. 365

DEMOREST — Interest in a parcel of land on Ga. 365 near Demorest-Mt. Airy Highway has Demorest officials expediting talks of sewer line installation up and down the four-lane highway.

"One of the things that we allocated as the primary importance in the last SPLOST election was placement of sewer service along Highway 365, both north and south, as much as we could afford," Mayor Rick Austin said following Tuesday night's city council work session.

That revenue is derived from the city's portion of Habersham County's 1-cent Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax.

"We have been approached by a potential developer on Highway 365," Austin said. "They have asked for sewer service that is directly in line with the forward thinking that we had as a city to make sure that we can put that sewer service at that location."

Austin said he looks forward to the city proceeding with installation of infrastructure to provide sewer service to the busy Ga. 365 corridor.

"We are going to move forward in putting sewer service out there," Austin said. "We hope that particular tenant comes through and decides that they're going to locate there. It greatly expands our ability to offer services on an area that is going to grow."

Austin said the expenditure for sewer line construction will pay dividends as future customers tie on.

"It will take a substantial amount of money to put that sewer service in, but we will reap the benefits and the citizens will reap the benefits as those revenues increase as that develops," Austin said.

Austin said the city hopes to install the lines using its own personnel rather than putting the project out for bids. He believes that will save the city a large portion of the cost of the project.

"Using our manpower and our expertise, we can utilize the money from SPLOST to be able to pay for that line," Austin said. "The estimated cost were it to be contracted out would be $1.3 million. Our experts, Bryan Popham and team, feel like they can do it for substantially less than that. It's going to take some time to do, but we've got the best water and sewer crew in Northeast Georgia, in my opinion. If they say they can get it done and get it done right, they've proved time and again that they can do so."

Austin said the project may take longer using city forces rather than a contractor, but believes the long-term benefits in the form of lower costs will allow the city to construct the full project.

"We're excited about the possibility, and we do think that SPLOST will take care of it in its entirety," Austin said. "We may have to front load a small loan to forward fund, but we do anticipate SPLOST will pay for it in its entirety."

Asked if he could disclose any details about the potential sewer customer or even the type industry of the suitor, Austin said it is too early to discuss anything publicly.

"I can't comment at this point," Austin said. "They're still in negotiations. Let's just say that they will be a benefit to not only the City of Demorest, but to Habersham County. We'll leave that conversation for a later date. But we're forward not only to them but to other potential suitors as well to come in and join our city."

  • Associated Categories: Homepage, Business News, Local/State News, Politics
  • Associated Tags: Demorest City Council, City of Demorest, Mayor Rick Austin, Demorest , sewer, Ga. 365 corridor, sewer lines
© Copyright 2024 AccessWDUN.com
All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission.