Century Develops $7 Million Wish List For Obama Stimulus Money

February 3, 2009

The Town of Century has developed a $7 million wish list for money they hope to receive from the state from President Obama’s economic stimulus plan.

High on the list are water system improvements  and a drainage project to eliminate flooding along Highway 29.

watertwr.jpgThe wish list include $1.4 million for a 300,000 gallon elevated storage tank, two gas operated back-up generators and six inch water mains to improve water system reliability. Mayor Freddie McCall wants to bump the dollar figure up to $1.7 million to increase the elevated tank capacity to 500,000 gallons and install water mains to provide adequate water pressure to underserved residents along Backwoods Road.

$1.9 million is also on the wish list for drainage improvements along North Century Boulevard. A portion of the highway flooded during Hurricane Georges.  Plans call for the improvement of a ditch from Highway 29 across Jackson and Zion streets to an existing lake. The plan had been considered by the state nearly 10 years ago, and some preliminary engineering work was done. But the project was never completed.

McCall said the opening of the four-lane Highway 113 in Alabama as a hurricane evacuation route spawned a renewed interest in the project by the Florida Department of Transportation.

The Century Town Council voted Monday night to spend $5,000 to have Fabre Engineering update the town’s eight-year old Facilities Plan in order to be able to apply for funding for projects on the wish list.

“This is critical; we must do something,” McCall told the council when asking for the $5,000.

There was some discussion from the council about the funds because they were not budgeted.

“We already made the decision to not spend money we did not budget,” Council President Ann Brooks said.

“We need to find the money somewhere even if we have to amend the budget,” council member Gary Riley said. And that’s what the council did — voting 4-0 to amend the budget for the $5,000 payment to the engineering firm.

Other projects on Century’s economic stimulus wish list include:

  • $40,000 to replace aging natural gas meters
  • $75,000 to install a flow meter to ensure adequate billing to the Century Correctional Institute
  • $500,000 to improve drainage in the Dogwood Lane area
  • $100,000 to improve the water system along Fannie Road
  • $1 million to clear and regrade existing clogged drainage ways to improve flow and reduce upstream flooding
  • $1.5 million to relocate about 6,000 feet of exisiting 6-inch gas main from under Highway 29 to the right-of-way
  • $360,000 miscellaneous improvements to the towns wastewater treatment plant.

Comments

4 Responses to “Century Develops $7 Million Wish List For Obama Stimulus Money”

  1. chuck on February 3rd, 2009 5:07 pm

    Where do you buy american nowdays? If you find it ,let me know.

  2. W.R. on February 3rd, 2009 11:49 am

    Good work Mayor Macall and Century Town Council. We need to start somewhere and this is good. I would love to see local people benefit from these so called “Stimulus packages” rather than big banks and/or being sent overseas. But the Money needs to hit the streets now not 12 to 18 months from now. It needs to be in the workman mans hand so it will get spent and keep the economy turning. My only vision is that our People will think where the money is going when the buy. ‘Buy American’ and keep the money in the USA and not sent to China or other foreign countries. When it goes there it stays. They are not buying from us. Lord help us if China should call in all the debts we owe now.

  3. Elizabeth on February 3rd, 2009 8:18 am

    I have a few things on my personal wish list that are pretty worthy. I could try sending it to president Obama, but somehow I don’t think he’s going to grant them…

  4. Jack Moran on February 3rd, 2009 6:40 am

    Nothing here about storm shelters, disaster plan, transit plan (a local bus system), or street paving . . . How about $12 milion?

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News