Snow Hill gets $500k Community Development Block Grant to revamp sewer system
SNOW HILL, Md. – Snow Hill’s sewer system is getting what town officials are calling a much needed update.
That’s thanks to a $503,700 Community Development Block Grant from the state of Maryland. It’s an extremely competitive grant that many fight for when they’re available.
“Like many small communities on the Eastern Shore, Snow Hill has an aging and deteriorating water and sewer infrastructure, which represents not only an environmental hazard, but it’s a blockage to the development of the town,” said Snow Hill Town Manager Rick Pollitt.
The pipes beneath our feet are something that most of us don’t even think twice about when flushing away wastewater. But in reality, Pollitt says sewage systems are a critical piece of infrastructure that help to make a town tick. “Left to our own devices, we simply can’t afford to do all that we should do. So, this money is going to be a godsend to help and protect our environment, and give our citizens a higher quality of water and a higher quality of life,” he said.
Pollitt says the current lines are at least 30 years old and are badly in need of repairs. Now that the money is in hand, plans to re-line the pipes are in the works. “We could have taken up the whole lines and replaced them entirely. But, that would have been way too expensive and it would have disrupted a lot of properties as well,” said Pollitt.
Revamping the sewer system will not only help protect the surrounding environment. It will also hopefully attract new business, and improve the quality of life for everyone in town, according to Pollitt. “When the pipes open up for leakage, that means more groundwater comes in when it rains, water levels rise, more water goes into the treatment plant, which takes up capacity,” he said. “It’s up to us as the government to give them the foundation they need to build on with the products and services they offer, and to make the community a place where people want to come and shop. But, we get the base in place for them.”
Worcester County Commissioner Joshua Nordstrom says federal funding like this can often pave the way for significant infrastructure improvements. He adds that’s not always easy in places where funding can be hard to come by. “These things don’t last forever. The pipes don’t last forever, the pumps don’t last forever. There’s a lot of maintenance and a lot of money that has to go into it to keep it working properly,” said Nordstrom. “That can be a big issue because towns and counties, not just here in Worcester County, but all over, face very difficult decisions sometimes, and often have to put off projects because of recessions or pandemics.”
Now that the funding is in place, the next steps are going to be finding engineers to design the construction through a bidding process. Pollitt says the work on the sewer lines is expected to be complete sometime in the next year or so. Meanwhile, Snow Hill is also working on improving drainage and repainting streets in other parts of town. The town is also embarking on a bike lane feasibility study to build bike trails that will connect schools to the downtown area. “There’s just so much positive stuff going on in Snow Hill right now. It’s a great time to be here,” said Pollitt.
