Tap-ins scheduled to begin in June
BULLSKIN TWP. – Residential and commercial customers affected by a $5.52 million sewerage project encompassing parts of Bullskin and Connellsville townships can expect to receive an initial tap-in notice sometime next month. Dick Widmer, vice president of Widmer Engineering Inc. of Connellsville, said members of the Bullskin Township/Connellsville Township Joint Sewerage Authority are currently reviewing various billing formats that will best suit the purpose of the project.
“Once we pick the format, we’ll go ahead and send them (the notices) out,” said Widmer, projecting June as a target date.
According to Widmer, a number of residents have been inquiring as to how soon they will need to pay the tap-in fee, which the authority established based on the number of equivalent dwelling units (EDU) per single-family residence, as well as that of commercial users.
For single family dwellings, one EDU is equivalent to up to 60,000 gallons of water per year, while the EDU for commercial users is based on data collected over the last year regarding the amount of water the businesses have consumed.
Widmer said the bulk of commercial users that will be affected by the project include the businesses located in the business park situated off Route 119 along Bellview Drive in Bullskin Township, in addition to Connellsville Area School District and local restaurants.
Overall, the project will serve 576 households in the Poplar Grove area in Connellsville Township, the Merit Manor area, the Route 119 corridor and in Pennsville in Bullskin Township.
The authority has set the tap-in fee for residential households at $1,200 that will be reduced by $200 if customers pay within the first 60 days after it is mailed. For those customers who pay within 120 days, the fee will be $1,100 while those who wait until the time they are required to tap in will pay the full amount.
D&M Contracting of New Alexandria broke ground on the project in March and is about 50 percent complete with construction of a sewage collection system along Moyer Road in Bullskin Township. D&M’s contract totals $2,349,642; however the firm has since been able to save the authority $50,000.
Under the second part of the project, D.T. Construction Inc. of Dunbar will construct three pump stations along Buttermore Boulevard and Demuth Road in Connellsville Township and along Moyer Road at a cost of $537,000.
Widmer said D.T. has already ordered the materials and will begin following D&M.
On the other hand, Shallenberger Construction Inc. of Connellsville, which will construct the sewage collection system for $2,121,086, doesn’t anticipate to start until next month since the firm is just wrapping up construction to a sewerage project in Dunbar Township.