Marion gets $2.09 million state grant to replace 1928 water main on Wareham Road

MARION Marion will replace 3,200 feet of the water main under Wareham Road, a pipe laid in 1928 that the town says breaks often, with a $2.09 million state grant the town announced Monday. The new main will be twice as wide, new hydrants will go in along the way, and the work is planned to finish before the state rebuilds the Route 6 corridor so crews will not have to cut into new pavement, the town said.

The money comes from the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities through its HousingWorks Infrastructure Program, according to the announcement the town posted on its website Oct. 19. The state's award list for this year's Community One Stop for Growth round puts the exact figure at $2,091,700 for the town's "Wareham Road Water Main."

What the work does

The main will go from 6 inches to 12 inches, which the town said will improve reliability and provide "greater hydraulic capacity for area residents, businesses and future housing." The project also adds new hydrants, placed with firefighting in mind, and improves water flow in the area. The town described the old line as having "a history of frequent breaks" and said it has become "a maintenance burden for the town, creating an obstacle for future development."

"This grant will allow the Town to improve critical infrastructure, ensuring a safe and reliable water supply while reducing the risk of future infrastructure breaks, improve fire flow and overall hydraulic deficiencies within the water system," Engineering Manager Meghan Davis said in the announcement. She said the money lets the town make the upgrades "without placing additional financial burden on Marion residents or depleting the municipal budget."

What it costs

Monday's announcement gave no total cost for the project and did not say whether any town money will go into it. A Jan. 14 report by the Capital Improvements Planning Committee, which the town printed with the warrant for the May 11 Annual Town Meeting, put a "Wareham St Water Main Replacement" at $3.2 million, ranked it fifth of the 12 water and sewer requests, and noted that the project "gets $1.2M gift from developer(s)." The report did not name a developer.

The committee report calls the project a "Wareham St" main, while the town's announcement and the state's award list say Wareham Road. Both names appear in town records: Monday's Planning Board agenda lists one item at 78 Wareham Road and another on "Wareham Street (Route 6)." Neither the grant announcement nor the committee report says whether the $3.2 million item covers the same stretch of pipe, whether that estimate still holds, or how the state grant and the developer gift fit together.

The May warrant's capital article did not ask voters to fund the main. Article 15 asked for $1,866,000, including $269,000 from water retained earnings for a North Well access road and upgrades to the East and West wells, and no Wareham Road or Wareham Street water main appears in that list.

Part of a statewide round

The governor's office announced the round Oct. 1, saying it carried $330 million for 403 local economic development and housing projects in 207 communities. Marion also received $94,000 from the Rural Development Fund for its master plan, the award list shows. Fall River, Dartmouth and New Bedford received HousingWorks money in the round as well: Fall River, $5 million for Alden Street construction; Dartmouth, $2,205,000 for a project listed as "Route 6 Pumps Station"; and New Bedford, $408,000 for a project listed as "Historic Affordable TOD."

What happens next

The town said it will work with the state housing office and expects "to finalize the necessary contracting requirements with the state in the coming weeks." Details on the construction timeline, traffic and effects on the neighborhood will be shared "as project planning progresses," the announcement said. No construction dates have been posted.

The main is not on the warrant for the fall Special Town Meeting, which the Select Board signed Sept. 30. That meeting is Nov. 9 at 6 p.m. in the Sippican School auditorium, and its three articles cover public way and shared use path land along Front Street, Spring Street and Washburn Park Road, plus $1,297,895 from sewer enterprise receipts for phosphorus removal upgrades at the town's wastewater treatment plant.

The Select Board, which also sits as the town's water and sewer commissioners, meets Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 6 p.m. in the Town House conference room, 2 Spring St. Its posted agenda does not list the grant. The meeting is recorded and shown on ORCTV. The Water and Sewer Regulations Review Committee meets Thursday, Oct. 22, at 3 p.m. in the same room to discuss the town's water and sewer regulations. The Town House number is 508-748-3500.

Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.