Area communities receive federal funds for water improvements

Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs announced today 14 rural Indiana communities will receive more than $8 million in federal grant funding to expand community facilities and improve water infrastructure.

“When quality of life in rural Indiana is high, it improves the quality of life of our entire state,” said Lt. Gov. Crouch, Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. “I celebrate the work of these rural towns and cities who took the extra step to improve their communities by earning these grants.”

The Office of Community and Rural Affairs distributes Community Development Block Grant funds to rural communities, which assist units of local government with various community projects such as infrastructure improvement, downtown revitalization, public facilities and economic development.

"Congratulations to these rural towns and cities for their hard work in earning these grant funds," said OCRA Executive Director Duke Bennett. "Quality of life improvement projects such as these can be transformational for our Hoosier communities and their residents."

The Public Facilities Program creates and expands community facilities that enhance the lives of residents. Eligible projects include fire stations, community facilities, libraries, museums, community centers and performance spaces that open doors to knowledge, ideas, culture and enjoyment.

The City of Attica and Attica Firefighters, Inc. will receive $461,190 for a fire station expansion, including a new truck bay.

The goals of the Wastewater and Drinking Water program are to protect resident and environmental health, reduce utility rates for low-to-moderate income communities and improve rural infrastructure to enable long-term economic growth.

Projects receiving Wastewater and Drinking Water program grant funding include:

• The Town of Montezuma is awarded $700,000 for the construction of a reverse osmosis treatment facility, installation of new pumps and implementation of a conveyance process for the town's water treatment facility.
• The Town of Perrysville is awarded $700,000 for a comprehensive rehabilitation of the town’s major water system components. This includes water storage improvements and water distribution system improvements. The project will provide residents with enhanced water supply and distribution and increase storage and water main capacity for reliable, safe drinking water. Additionally, the project will enhance firefighter water supply options during emergencies.