County Executive Tom Gordon is pleased to announce that the new Southern New Castle County Sewer Redirect has been completed ahead of schedule and is projected to save the County up to $100 million over the next 30 years.
The southern line was necessary to address growth in the area north of Middletown in a way that made more economic sense for New Castle County, County Executive Gordon said.
“Completing this project was very important to taxpayers and, by extension, County finances,” the Executive said. “We anticipate that this $2.3 million investment will go a long way toward stabilizing our rates and avoiding future increases.
“When it comes to any kind of tax increase, the answer is always no in my book,” he added. “I want to thank Acting Special Services General Manager Wayne Merritt and the Special Services staff for their hard work in getting this vital project completed nearly one month ahead of schedule.”
Previously, flows generated by development in the area below the C & D had been taken to Middletown for treatment at the Town's plant. The County paid Middletown fees for treating its sewage. This project diverted the Central Core flows to the County's treatment facility near Odessa and eliminated future payments to Middletown – thereby increasing the County's ability to control sewage treatment efficiently.
The force main is 18 inches in diameter and extends a total length of 14,573 linear feet from the Cedar Lane Pumping Station on Cedar Lane Road and along Boyds Corner Road. The actual capacity of the 18” force main and the gravity sewer is 4.5 MGD (million gallons per day) that can provide service for up to 5,000 homes currently and could serve up to 10,000 homes with an upgrade in the future, according to the NCC Department of Special Services.
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