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Federal Funding to Aid Wastewater Plan Design

At a meeting on Aug. 7, Town Manager Michelle Benivegna announced the town has received $500,000 in federal funding to design a downtown wastewater collection system and treatment facility.

Clinton Water Pollution chairman Matthew Kennedy said the town first applied for the funds in April.

“We put in a request to Senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal’s offices for congressional directing spending money. We were told the request made it out of committee,” Kennedy said.

A press release from Murphy’s website said the money will only become available when the bill is passed by Congress and signed into law. Kennedy said he expects that to happen by the end of 2024.

“The plan is to use the money with another fund we already have to design a downtown wastewater collection system,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy said that implementing such a system could have several benefits for the town. Due to the size of the lots downtown, as well as conditions like shallow bedrock or poor solid quality, there are limits on the size of septic systems allowed downtown. The size of the septic systems, in turn, affects the kinds of businesses that are permitted to open in the dead.

However, hydraulic testing on two sites located roughly behind Grand Apizza and Chips Pub proved promising, Kennedy said.

A larger wastewater system would allow for wider wastewater capacity and a wider range of potential development.

“It would create the ability if the town wished to pursue the area for more economic growth for things like restaurants or housing,” Kennedy explained. “To attract the kinds of businesses that people want, you have to have the infrastructure in place.”

Beyond the potential economic benefits, Kennedy said the environmental impacts of a new system are equally as exciting. Kennedy said keeping contaminants out of the Indian River, which flows through the downtown area, is important for protecting the harbor beach and shellfishing areas.

Furthermore, Kennedy said the plan helps satisfy a longstanding directive from the state. In 1997, the Town of Clinton and the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection entered into a consent order mandating that the town develop a wastewater facilities plan to evaluate and address existing and potential community pollution problems related to onsite wastewater disposal. A downtown wastewater collection system would help satisfy that order, Kennedy said.

Kennedy noted that the council unanimously voted to apply for the money in April and praised the council members and town staff, such as town planner Abby Piersall, for the willingness to pursue the project.

“It shows the council is committed to doing something about the downtown. If you have good leadership in town, then things can move in a positive direction.