Somerton, county secure grant to connect public housing to city water
SOMERTON – This city and Yuma County have secured a $640,000 grant from a state agency to hook up a public housing complex in Somerton to city water
The grant from the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority will go to extend a 1.3-mile underground line along Highway 95 to the Valley Vista Apartments, located on the city’s west side.
Somerton Public Works Director Samuel Palacios said that the county began negotiations with WIFA more than a year ago to secure a grant, which will now be administered by the city. The city council voted recently to formally accept the funding.
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality last month recommended that WIFA provide the funding for the project, which will serve 84 low-income families living in the apartments that are subsidized by the federal government and managed by the county’s housing department.
“Valley Vista is served by water from a well and a small treatment plant, but its maintenance and operation are very costly, so this project is being done,” Palacios said.
The city this month will request bids from contractors interested in installing the line, he said.
The apartments are located along Highway 95, west of Avenue G, in an area annexed by the city in 2009.
Apart from Valley Vista tenants, the line will serve future residents and businesses that are expected to locate on Somerton’s west side in the future as the city grows, Palacios said.
The pricetag of the project is expected to be nearly $990,000, and the city and county will provide matching funds to cover part of the cost.
Two years ago, the city and county collaborated in a project to hook Valley Vista to the city’s sewer system. That project was financed with a grant and loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.