Byesville receives $1.4M loan for Guernsey Power Station sewer extension project

BYESVILLE — The Ohio Water Development Authority has awarded the Village of Byesville a $1.4 million, low interest loan for completion of Phase II of the Guernsey Power Station Sewer Extension Project.

The 20-year loan at 1.28% will cover the cost of constructing 11,200 feet of force main line from Seneca Lane along Marietta Road to the lift station at the intersection of Marietta and Lucasburg roads.

The actual project cost for Phase II is estimated at $875,000, according to Byesville Village Administrator Brennan Dudley.

"This is a village project, but we will be reimbursed for the extension by the developers of the power plant," said Dudley. "It will not cost the village or our residents any money."

Phase II of the sewer extension project is scheduled to begin by the end of February. The contractor is Border Patrol of Cadiz.

The total cost of the project is estimated at $2.7 million.

Dudley said 22,000 feet of new pipe will be installed during the project's three phases.

Phase I was completed by Precise Boring of Ohio late last year at a cost in excess of $200,000. The work included construction of a sewer line from the power plant along Seneca Lane to Marietta Road (Ohio 821).

Work for Phases II and III will be conducted simultaneously, according to Dudley.

Phase III will be a second line from the lift station north along Country Club Road to Pioneer Road where it will continue into the village. The line will cross Southgate Road (Ohio 209) and end at the wastewater plant on Hope Avenue in Byesville.

The estimated cost for Phase III is $1.6 million and the contractor is M. Campbell Contracting, LLC, of Stow.

Phase II and III are scheduled to be completed in June.

"This project is a great example of a partnership between public and private groups that is used to grow the community," said Dudley, who has direct oversight of water, sewer and street departments in the village.

"And, it is good that we are able to work together to get this project accomplished."

The Guernsey Power Station is expected to produce 1,650 megawatts of electricity, which would be enough to power about 1.5 million homes.

Unlike traditional power plants in the region, the Guernsey Power Plant will be fueled by natural gas — now abundant locally because of taps into the Marcellus and Utica shale formations.

Once completed, the plant will employ 25 people in full-time, highly-skilled positions. 

In all, the Ohio Water Development Authority awarded $38 million through low interest loans and grants to numerous Ohio communities to improve wastewater and drinking water infrastructure and make water quality improvements for Ohioans.

For the month of January, the authority funded 14 projects that will replace aging infrastructure, expand capacity of treatment plants, extend service areas such as in Byesville, and install technology for better water quality.