PERRYVILLE PREPARING FOR WATER SYSTEM UPGRADE

PERRYVILLE -- The city staff is busy completing preliminary work on the $8.85 million water system upgrade with the goal of construction starting next summer.

Within the next few months, the city expects to contract with a firm to design a new water treatment plant and other project components, and secure a site for the plant. Eight sites near Saline Creek are under consideration.

Two tax measures -- a debt service levy and a sales tax increase -- approved by city voters early this month will fund the project.

"Barring any major problems, we intend to follow the timetable presented to voters during the campaign," said City Manager Craig Lindsley.

The entire project is expected to be completed in 2001.

When completed, the new plant will produce approximately 2.34 million gallons of water daily.

The existing plant averages daily production of 1.2 million gallons and reaches maximum capacity at 1.6 million gallons.

"There have been times during peak periods when we have been at 100 percent capacity," Lindsley said. "But right now we average about 75 percent capacity."

Demand on the system is expected to top 2 million gallons a day within 20 years.

The existing water plant -- built in 1928 -- will be closed once its replacement is operational.

In one of the first steps in laying the groundwork for the project, Perryville submitted an application to the State Revolving Fund Program to benefit from low interest rates for a planned $4.1 million bond issue.

The city will begin issuing the bonds sometime next spring.

City property owners will pay a 25-cent debt service levy per $100 assessed valuation to retire the bonds starting next fall. The levy will remain in place for the life of the bonds.

Although tax bills recently mailed to Perryville residents includes no debt service levy, next year's increase will actually be a restoration of the levy residents had paid for 12 years. That levy, which paid for the city pool, expired in 1997.

The three-eighths-cent sales tax hike will take effect April 1, bringing the total municipal sales tax to one and seventh-eights cents.

The sales tax is expected to raise $4.75 million for the project.

Lindsley called voter understanding of the need to improve the water system key to the passage of the tax increases.

Construction of two new wells on the South Fork of Saline Creek will mark the first phase of the project, and will begin this summer.