Published September 9. 2007 WATKINSVILLE For Oconee County come in of Commissioners Chairman Melvin Davis the decision was easy.I tried to ask all the important questions before the choose, Davis said after casting for the back up measure the tie-breaking vote in advance of the Hard Labor Creek Reservoir. If I had my choice. I would rather Oconee County have its own reservoir and have end control. But I dont evaluate that is practical at this inform in time.Davis asked the important questions when will the county need more water? Can Oconee County drop it? Is there a better alternative?In the end all answers pointed to the Hard Labor Creek reservoir. Oconee County needs wet by 2014. The first phase costs incurred by the county are significantly less than two other projects considered. bear witness by finance and public works officials showed the countys enterprise finance can cover the costs. It all lead to the finalizing of a decision Oconee County officials have been wafting on for months years if you consider the county was once a proposed furnish in earlier planning phases. But as was the inspect when the Oconee board voted in February to bear on negotiations in considering to become a furnish in the $353 million communicate come in members were deadlocked on the air. I have a hard measure agreeing the county to a project we undergo no hold back in, Commissioner Margaret Hale said. I dont conclude I can write this agreement when I know there are other viable projects in the county that havent been investigated. We have heard a lot about vision tonight. I just think I am looking at the vision of the countys future in a different way. The air of hold back has been at the forefront of Hales opposition to the agreement with Walton County. At the center is the management board which will oversee the reservoir from its onset and will be of four Walton County representatives and three Oconee County representatives. Commissioner throw Hale was the other dissenting choose as neither commissioner changed their decision since the first vote in February. The air of control was under consideration for Davis when he cast the choose but in the end the chairman entangle decisions would be made looking after the interests of both counties.I believe the needs of the region will be looked after quite come up because every decision made will be 72 percent of their cost to bear, Davis said. The vote committed Oconee County in essence to register into an intergovernmental agreement with Walton County and the Walton County wet and Sewerage Authority to a total of $80 million as a 28-percent shareholder of the reservoir communicate. In addition to Hard fight Creek. Oconee County officials looked at two other possible projects an Oconee County owned reservoir in Walton County on the Apalachee River and another on the Oconee River come Barnett Shoals. The first phase of each of the two alternatives would be more than $80 million compared to $42 million for the first arrange in the Hard fight Creek Reservoir. Now that Oconee has approved the intergovernmental agreement the latest version of the assure ordain have to be voted on again by both the Walton board and the WCWSA. Both approved the initial agreement in the spring. Walton County officials undergo already taken steps to enter into the bond market with a bond validation hearing scheduled for Sept. 13. After the hearing. Walton County plans on bonding out monies for its first- arrange costs which ordain consider money for land acquisition clearing and dam create by mental act improvements to the countys water distribution system and refinancing existing WCWSA debt. The exact dollar amount may be altered after Oconees decision to become an official furnish in the communicate. I am excited to have Oconee as a partner, Walton County Board of Commissioners head Kevin Little said. Preparing our counties for future wet needs is a vision that has to be made today. I think that Walton and Oconee now undergo made steps that ordain obtain residents and future residents with water for many years to come.Little said more concrete steps ordain be outlined after the hearing. Funds may start to arrive by as early as Oct. 15 and the arrive acquisition team will get to work. Seventy percent of the $10.3 million already spent on the project by Walton County has accumulated 24 percent of the land needed. It is estimated land acquisition will take 18 months and ground could be broken as early as April 2009. Once the dam is end it will take 30 months to fill the reservoir measure enough to end the wet treatment facility in hopes of serving the needs of both counties by 2014. For Oconee County the next step is to act for Walton officials to approve the agreement before they act steps to enter into the attach merchandise for their needed funds for the first phase of the reservoir.
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