Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Greenville Getting Water

Water was the topic brought before the Gurdon City Council recently by a Greenville resident.

Shirley Todd, who lives in the Greenville community, questioned members of the council as to when the area could expect to be getting city water.

People in Greenville, she said, have paid their $125 connection fees, but have seen nothing. According to Todd, it's been two years since the people paid for the water.

Gurdon Mayor Rick Smith explained the initial water project did not include the Greenville area because enough people, at the time, didn't sign up.

This meant, he said, funding for the Greenville portion of the project wasn't available during the first two phases.

However, once the Gurdon Rural Water Project was completed, enough money to run water lines to Greenville was left.

Todd said she spoke with Harold Hurst, manager of the Gurdon Water and Sewer Department, several times, but heard nothing about a Greenville water project.

She said either the money for the deposits should be refunded or water lines ran. "It's detrimental to the community not to have water," Todd said.

Smith pointed out there are many rules and regulations concerning water systems. The money on water projects, he continued, is not spent in vain.

It was pointed out once the rural water project was done the Water Department did try to tag the Greenville project onto it to get water to the region.

However, the lending agencies involved wouldn't allow this. They require the Greenville project to be treated as a brand new undertaking.

This is also what Hurst said, and this is what has been done. Plans for the Greenville project have been drawn up by Charles Summerford, project engineer, and approved by the Arkansas Department of Health.

Hurst said the money is already in hand for the project and the Rural Development Agency, formerly known as Farmer's Home Administration (FmHA), has given its approval to let bids.

The next step is to get easements signed by property owners along the proposed route of the water lines, and to let the bids.

Hurst said this will be a small project and won't take the contractor long to do, once everything is in place.

The project will add about 13 new meters to the Gurdon Water and Sewer list.

The undertaking, Hurst said, will cross three railroad tracks, which means getting permits to laser bore beneath them and run the lines.

If all goes well, he said, by the end of summer the Greenville area should be on Gurdon city water.