By John Howell
Como, during Tuesday night’s meeting of the board of mayor and aldermen, moved a step closer toward a large-scale project to rehabilitate its wastewater treatment facilities and fresh water distribution system.
Aldermen voted unanimously to separate funds collected for water and sewer fees to be held in separate accounts from fees collected for garbage pickup. The funds are presently co-mingled.

 Mayor Everette Hill said that separation of the funds would comply with guidelines of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) whose funding is sought to pay for the rehabilitation project cost, estimated at $5 million.

Customers will continue to receive one bill for the services, the mayor said.

Como Alderwoman Rachel Powell’s motion to separate the funds was seconded by Alderman John Walton. Alderwoman Tonia Heard provided the third vote for the funds, making it, in the absence of Alderwomen Ruby Higgenbottom and Teresa Dishmon, unanimous.

The mayor said that work with the city’s engineering firm, Cook Coggin Engineering of Tupelo, had whittled the initial price tag for the projected rehab from $6.5 million.

“We’re trying to cut down so we don’t have to do (any) water raise,” Hill said. “That’ll send Como off.”

If the town is successful in obtaining USDA financing, about 75 percent will be a grant. “So we’re going to have to do a loan,” Hill said of the remaining 25 percent.

Cook Coggins spokesman David Long, contacted on Thursday, said that Como could be eligible for a grant of up to 75 percent of the wastewater treatment rehab cost and up to 45 percent for the cost of the freshwater distribution distribution rehab.

“We’ve got a lot of paperwork we’ve got to get together for USDA,” the mayor told constituents Tuesday night. Cook Coggin and the USDA are assisting with the grant/loan application process, he said.

“We’ve got a good chance because we’re under DEQ (Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality) orders,” the mayor said, responding to a question from Karen Ott Mayer.

The proposed rehabilitation would bring the town’s wastewater treatment process into compliance with Environmental Protection Agency standards.

 Smoke testing of sewer lines has been tentatively been set for after January 1, the mayor said.

The testing forces non-toxic smoke into sewer lines to  reveal where breaks in the pipes allow stormwater runoff to enter the sewer system, overloading the wastewater treatment facility.

Hill said that the smoke testing through Como’s membership in the Mississippi Rural Water Association would cost about $3,000, compared to a price of up to $144,000 without the membership.

The project will also clean and repaint Como’s iconic water tower and provide for new water meters for all customers. The new digital meters allow meter readers to read usage remotely, from a vehicle as it passes by the meter location.

“Three days and a half of meter reading will probably turn into a couple of hours,” Hill said.