Officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development program on Tuesday announced further federal funding for the county’s $34 million Millville-area sewer expansion project.
Federal officials presented the county a $4 million loan and a $1 million grant Tuesday that brought the USDA’s total funding thus far to $10 million for the project that will bring sewer service to 1,300 homes locally.
“Rural Development is pleased to be one of the many partners that are supporting this project financially,” said Marlene Elliot, state director of the federal program, in a press release. “The funding announced today is a return of the people’s money coming back home to Sussex County to improve the quality of life for the residents and to help protect the environment around them.”
Elliott said Tuesday that Rural Development has contributed $63 million to projects in rural Delaware and $28 million along the Route 26 corridor alone.
“This loan and grant are essential pieces to the funding puzzle for a project we believe will improve the environment and benefit the residents of the Millville area,” Dave Baker, county administrator, said in Tuesday’s press release. “The federal funds, along with financial support from the State of Delaware, the development community and the Sussex County Council, will ensure that this project moves forward in such a way that is affordable for all users.”
Developers have committed to contribute $13 million to the project; the state has committed $10.5; Sussex plans to spend $500,000; and the USDA has now contributed $10 million in grants and loans. Officials announced the first $5 million in a presentation with Rep. Mike Castle (R-Del.) and town officials at Millville Town Hall last year.
Central sewer systems have been touted as environmentally friendly — and also the foundation for future development.
Around the bays, officials have replaced nearly 14,000 individual septic systems since 1990 with more closely-monitored central sewer systems, according to state and county records.
The county’s replacement of polluting, failing and outdated onsite septic systems has been lauded by the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. Such moves have reduced the amount of nitrogen entering the bays locally by up to 89 pounds daily, according to last year’s version of the department’s pollution strategy.
While acknowledging its environmental value, sewer expansion has also been criticized by some as a way to attract further development, which has been unpopular with many who cite congested evacuation and beach-feeding routes as a problem here. From 2000 to 2006, the county permitted at least 6,300 homes in the Coastal Point’s coverage area alone.