Petri, Tomlinson Announce Grant for Northampton Sewer Project

Safe Water Fund Grant “will reduce the construction cost by approximately $ 5,865 per residence.”
Richboro, PA — Rep. Scott Petri and Sen. Robert “Tommy” Tomlinson yesterday, just prior to the Northampton Bucks County Municipal Authority meeting at Richboro Middle School, announced a $2 million state grant from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to assist Northampton Township residents with the cost of the upcoming sewer project in the township.

“Senator Tomlinson and I are very pleased that we were able to secure a state grant to help ease the heavy financial burden on Northampton Township residents affected by this sewer project,” Petri said. “It took Senator Tomlinson and I all summer to bring this grant to fruition. Without our concerted effort, I do not believe we would have secured as much for residents. There are approximately 341 residents who will be asked to pay for part of this system. We are calling upon these funds to be divided equally which will reduce the construction cost by approximately $ 5,865 per residence.”

The funds are part of the DEP’s Safe Water Fund and will be directed to the Northampton Bucks County Municipal Authority to pay for part of the construction cost of new sewer lines to service residents in the western end of Northampton Township. The grant is available for residents in both Phase I and Phase II of the project.

“It is important that we do all we can do for affected residents to reduce the financial burden of complying with the Department of Environmental Protection’s enforcement order,” said Tomlinson.

“Representative Petri and I are very concerned about the water quality of wells and the nearby streams. The Department of Environmental Protection Safe Water Fund was created for circumstances like this where water quality has been degraded.”

“A good and clean supply of water is an essential element for public health and safety,” said Petri. “That is why Senator Tomlinson and I have been strong advocates for this funding source. Senator Tomlinson and I are also writing letters of support to PennVEST to try to obtain low-interest loans to further reduce the costs of this project to the authority and to the residents.”

“This grant will help all of the ratepayers of the Authority by reducing the construction cost for the project,” Petri said.

The announcement was made during an evening news conference at the Richboro Middle School on Wednesday, Spetember 3, 2008.

Rep. Scott Petri
178th District, Pennsylvania House of Representatives
(215) 364-3414
www.RepPetri.com
Sen. Robert “Tommy” Tomlinson
6th District, Pennsylvania Senate
(215) 945-2800
www.SenatorTomlinson.com