By KEN WYATT
Contributing Writer
Pulaski Township took a step forward in the Swains Lake Sewer Project at this month’s board meeting. After a report from Alan Smaka, project engineer, the board voted to authorize application to the U.S. Agriculture Department for funding the project.
That was a decision based on advantages of going through the USDA rather than other financing options. The USDA would mean lower interest rates and longer loan repayment terms for residents.
During Smaka’s status report, he gave the board a four-page project schedule. It itemizes 46 actions needed to bring the project to completion (proposed for the summer of 2028). The USDA Rural Development funding request is No. 10 on Smaka’s schedule.
In the compressed language of the schedule, the application is under Michigan’s “Act 185,” and for a “whole lake sewer” system, without water, a gravity-collection system with both treatment and operation by the Village of Concord.
Supervisor Chuck Todd says the “whole-lake” provision does not mean both sides of the lake will necessarily end up with sewers; however, the application presents that as a possibility. He explained it would help qualify the project for grants to offset the project cost.
Based on support by a majority of residents, the township created the sewer district several years ago for a limited part of the south side of Swains Lake. The district did not include several residents at the far end of Swains Lake Drive, an area at Gregory Lake. It was judged at the time that it would be too costly to extend the sewer lines that far.
However, much has happened since then. The original design called for a small community system devised by a previous engineer, Larry Stephens. When that project went to bids during COVID-19, the project cost had doubled from first estimates.
That sent the township back to the drawing board. When the board asked engineer Smaka to take over the project in the fall of 2024, he analyzed all options and concluded that the best option was to work with the village of Concord, which has an existing system with capacity to handle Swains Lake’s sewage.
Negotiations with the village continue, and is No. 11 on Smaka’s schedule. It calls for the parties to “complete negotiations and finalize project assumptions” with county agencies – the parks, Board of Public Works, health and transportation departments.
The schedule calls for completion of those negotiations by April 1.
Several other goals are scheduled for the next few months. A public information meeting would be held in mid-summer per the schedule – including details on project cost and financial information.
So, how realistic is a “whole lake” system? As Smaka had pointed out in previous sessions, the best long-term solution would be to serve the entire lake with sewer service. Environmentally, though the north side of the lake has less interest or need, all lake residents are putting waste into aging septic systems, which over time are likely to pollute ground water and presumably the lake itself.
But north-side residents voted against sewer service years ago. So that may still be the majority sentiment. However, without a fresh poll of residents, and with clear progress on the project – sentiment may be shifting.
Meanwhile, township officials will participate in a zoom session March 3 with attorneys and county officials to ascertain whether the county is willing to assist in the project’s financing.
