DUANE SHERRILLEditor

Tullahoma, Coffee County and Franklin County will all get a piece of a nearly $300 million pie aimed at improving water infrastructure in the state of Tennessee.

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) Friday announced 131 grants totaling $299,228,167 from the state’s American Rescue Plan (ARP) fund, part of which TDEC is administering in the form of drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure grants. Since August, TDEC has awarded and announced $933,632,711 in grant funds through ARP programming.

Of the 131 grants announced, 29 are collaborative grants and 102 are non-collaborative grants. Collaborative grants involve multiple entities (cities, counties, or water utilities) partnering on projects to work toward a shared purpose. All grants awarded represent 469 individual drinking water, wastewater, and/or stormwater infrastructure projects. 

Coffee County Mayor Judd Matheny said the water tower improvements are for Hillsville and West Warren utility districts.  Coffee County will use the non-collaborative grants to develop an Asset Management Plan and address critical drinking water and wastewater needs. Projects include the construction of a 500,000-gallon water tank within the Beech Grove community of Coffee County and the replacement of an aged 200,000-gallon elevated water tank.

Coffee County will also improve its wastewater treatment plant at Wayside Acres through tree removal, drip line replacement and drip area vegetation improvements. The county will provide a state-of-the-art control panel and control system updates that will assist in reducing the occurrence of effluent violations.

Tennessee received $3.725 billion from the ARP, and the state’s Financial Stimulus Accountability Group dedicated $1.35 billion of those funds to TDEC to support water projects in communities throughout Tennessee. Of the $1.35 billion, approximately $1 billion was designated for non-competitive formula-based grants offered to counties and eligible cities to address systems’ critical needs. Those include developing Asset Management Plans, addressing significant non-compliance, updating aging infrastructure, mitigating water loss for drinking water systems, and reducing inflow and infiltration for wastewater systems.

The grants announced are part of the $1 billion non-competitive grant program. The remaining funds ($269 million) will go to state-initiated projects and competitive grants.

“As Tennessee continues to experience unprecedented growth, we’re prioritizing critical infrastructure investments that will address the needs of Tennesseans and give local communities the resources needed to thrive,” Gov. Bill Lee said. “We look forward to the improvements these projects will bring, and we commend the communities who have gone through the application process.”

Amounts received by area municipalities include: 

City of Tullahoma, $2,370,558

The City of Tullahoma will use ARP funds to create a stormwater master plan and move forward with additional stormwater system improvement projects. Projects include the replacement of an aging stormwater box culvert and the installation of a drainage detention pond. Tullahoma will also survey and evaluate two additional stormwater projects as part of their stormwater master plan. 

Coffee County, $3,412,500

Coffee County will use ARP funds to develop an Asset Management Plan and address critical drinking water and wastewater needs. Projects include the construction of a 500,000-gallon water tank within the Beech Grove community of Coffee County and the replacement of an aged 200,000-gallon elevated water tank. Coffee County will also improve its wastewater treatment plant through tree removal, drip line replacement, and drip area vegetation improvements. The county will provide a state-of-the-art control panel and control system updates that will assist in reducing the occurrence of effluent violations.

Franklin County, $3,737,963

Franklin County, in collaboration with the Belvidere Rural Utility District, the Center Grove – Winchester Springs Utility District, and the Sewanee Utility District, will use ARP funds to create comprehensive Asset Management Plans and modernize, improve, and strengthen water infrastructure in the county. Projects include the implementation of well-performing asset management programs, the replacement of lead service lines, and water loss reduction efforts. 

City of Decherd, $804,760

The City of Decherd will use ARP funds to modernize, improve, and strengthen water infrastructure in Decherd. Project goals are to reduce water loss and modernize aging infrastructure through the repair and replacement of outdated, failing pipes. 

Lincoln County, $4,570,687

Lincoln County will use ARP funds to develop several Asset Management Plans and address critical needs. Projects include GIS mapping, an inventory and condition assessment, the installation of modern IT infrastructure, and the construction of new water transmission lines. 

Town of Monteagle, $1,155,086

The town of Monteagle will use ARP funds to develop an Asset Management Plan and address critical wastewater system needs. Repairs will be made to the sanitary sewer system in order to mitigate excessive infiltration and inflow during wet weather events. 

City of Shelbyville, $2,967,622

The City of Shelbyville will use ARP funds to develop an Asset Management Plan and address critical wastewater needs. Projects include sewer system inspection for rehabilitation in the Little Hurricane Creek sewershed through flow monitoring and CCTV inspection to determine areas in need. Rehabilitation efforts will include point repairs, line rehabilitation, and manhole rehabilitation. 

Bedford County, $4,045,328

Bedford County, in collaboration with Bedford County Utility District, will use ARP funds to address critical needs and modernize their drinking water infrastructure. Projects include upgrades to their Water Treatment Plant by adding a 2-million-gallons-per-day (MGD) filtration system to increase capacity and continue providing safe, reliable drinking water in northern Bedford County.