Jaffrey secured a million-dollar grant last week to continue the joint water supply project the town embarked on last year with Peterborough.
On Aug. 19, the Northern Border Regional Commission Grant announced its eight awardees for infrastructure development grants, which included $1 million – nearly a quarter of the entire funds given out – to Jaffrey to support building a water treatment facility and distribution system.
The funds go into a pot along with tax dollars from Jaffrey and Peterborough and multiple other grants which are set to go towards the purchase of three wells and the surrounding land on the Jaffrey/Sharon line, known as Coldstone Springs.
Jaffrey and Peterborough, partners in the project, will co-own the wells and the treatment plant they plan to build on the property.
The development of a new water source has been a high priority for both towns for years. The cost of the new facility and connecting it to both town’s water systems is steep, with a total cost of $12.6 million, but will bolster their water supply by up to 200,000-500,000 gallons of water per day, which the towns have said will be crucial for both private and commercial development to continue.
Peterborough’s portion of the cost is $7.7 million, and Jaffrey’s is $4.9 million, both of which Town Meeting voters have already approved. But that approval came with promises that a large portion of the cost would be born by federal and state grants.
Jaffrey voters only approved up to $3 million in bonds and $500,000 from the water fund for the project, with the remainder required to be raised through other sources. If those grants aren’t secured, the project won’t move forward.
Jon Frederick, Jaffrey’s town manager, said the Northern Border Regional Commission Grant is among the last pieces of the puzzle needed, putting the towns within $500,000 of their total fundraising goal. That last $500,000 he hopes will come from another grant, the Community Development Block Grant, which has already been applied for.
“This would be the final piece. We’re hopeful we will know in September,” Frederick said.
“The $1 million NBRC grant is a tremendous accomplishment for Jaffrey and their funding package,” said Rodney Bartlett, the town administrator for Peterborough. “Meetings are schedule next week to move the grant application forward. Very exciting and hopefully we will be ready for agreement signings in October and/or November.”
Both towns have had issues with securing new water sources, and have both tried unsuccessfully to drill new town wells. The three wells on the Coldstone property are ideal as they have already been drilled and been tested for water quality and approved for water drawing by the state.
The town of Jaffrey has been looking for an additional water source in part to support an expected expansion at one of its largest employers, MilliporeSigma, which anticipates significantly increasing its water usage in the coming years. Peterborough has been looking for a replacement well for the town’s South well, which was contaminated 30 years ago and taken off line.