By David Rogers. October 19, 2011. BLOWING ROCK -- Neither driving, frost-bitten rain nor a bitter cold wind could dampen Wednesday evening's "Turning of the Valve" ceremony.  It was the culmination of a decade-long intergovernmental and public/private collaboration connecting the water supplies of Blowing Rock, Boone, and Appalachian State University.

North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR) Secretary Dee Freeman was on hand for the occasion, with a message that underlined the importance of infrastructure, including water supplies, to residents and their local economies.  Mr. Freeman, appointed by Governor Beverly Perdue to the NCDENR post in 2009 and a former town manager of four North Carolina cities, gave a nod to Blowing Rock Town Manager Scott Hildebrand and Boone Town Manager Greg Young in acknowledging the importance this multi-agency project on the security of their respective town's water supplies. With a master's degree in public administration from Appalachian State, Freeman has a special connection to the High Country, and praised the many individuals from both the private and public sectors, past and present, who got the project started and saw it to fruition.

There were remarks aplenty beginning with Blowing Rock Mayor J.B. Lawrence, Boone Mayor Loretta Clawson, Freeman, North Carolina State Representative Jonathan Jordan (District 93), and Appalachian State University Chancellor Dr. Ken Peacock. Freeman and Lawrence were quick to acknowledge the contributions of former State Representative Cullie Tarleton, State Senator Steve Goss, and former Blowing Rock Town Commissioners Bobbie Ball, Terry Lentz, Keith Tester, Rita Wiseman, and David Wray, several of whom were in attendance.  Introduced during the ceremony and part of the official proceedings were the current Commissioners: Jim Steele, Albert Yount, Phil Pickett, Doug Matheson, and Tommy Klutz.

The leadership of current Boone elected representatives was also acknowledged, including Clawson, Lynne Mason, Stephen Philllips, Jamie Leigh, Andy Ball, Rennie Brantz, Velma Burnley, Graydon Eggers, Dempsey Wilcox, Janet Pepin and Liz Aycock.

Similar acknowledgement was conferred on current and former Watauga County elected officials, including Nathan Miller, David Blust, Jim Deal, Tim Futrelle, Vince Gable, John  Cooper, Mary Moretz, William R. Winkler III, Winston Kinsey and Keith Honeycutt.

The Historic Moment's History

Since 1991, the Town of Blowning Rock has been working toward identifying and implementing a long-term solution to water shortages that occur during drought conditions.  In the 1990s, the Town evaluated a variety of raw water options, including the drilling of wells and various surface water sources.

In 2000, the North Carolina Division of Water Resources determined that the safe yield of the Blowing Rock reservoir was 400,000 gallons of water per day.  As a result, the Public Water Supply Section placed a restriction of "...no new water line extensions within the Town's water system."

After completing a flow study in 2001, it was determined that the best source of raw water would be along Payne Branch in the area of U.S. 321, just south of Boone.  The Public Water Supply Section recommended that if Blowing Rock sought to place an intake at that point and pump water back to the Town's water treatment plant, then they also should construct a potable water line to interconnect the towns of Boone and Blowing Rock.

In early 2004, the Town of Blowing Rock approached the Town of Boone regarding additional water supplies, which triggered the Town of Boone to evaluate its own available water supply and anticipate its needs for the future. This evaluation revealed that Boone had a limited water supply that would not meet its future growth potential. As a result, Boone initiated a comprehensive water supply study.

Meanwhile the Town of Blowing Rock experienced significant water shortages due to drought conditions in 2007-2008.  In April 2008, Boone and Blowing Rock entered into an interlocal agreement for an emergency water supply between the two communities, facilitating the construction of the new emergency water interconnect.

Initial funding was obtained with grants from the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center and the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC).  In addition, the project was awarded a low-interest loan from the NCDENR Public Water Supply Section, through the State Revolving Fund.

In June 2008, the Town of Blowing Rock contracted with McGill Associates, P.A., to plan and design the proposed interconnect. Following all of the necessary funding and permitting requirements, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture (for administering the ARC funds), the National Park Service (for encroachments to the Blue Ridge Parkway), and various property owners for need rights-of-way, the project received bids on October 29, 2009.

Upon examining system interconnects and water supplies in 2008, the Town of Boone concurrently worked with Appalachian State University to develop a water system interconnect between those two jurisdiction's sources.  The $310,000 project received funding from the North Carolina Rural Center and was completed in late 2009.

So the combination of these projects created a tri-party water system interconnect to share needed water resources in the event of emergency, contamination, system failure, or lack of raw water for the benefit of High Country residents and visitors to the region.

Contractor Ronny Turner Construction Company, Inc. began construction in March 2010, with final completion in July of 2011.  The project involves five miles of 12-inch in diameter water lines, a 700 gallon per minute water booster pump station, and a series of meters and control valves.

The project is segregated between the two water systems at the boundary lines separating the Boone and Blowing Rock fire districts, just north of Tweetsie Railroad.

The project received funding from several agencies, including:

• State of North Carolina Grant, from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act ($756,480.06)
• Appalachian Regional Commission, U.S. Department of Agriculture ($202,186)
• North Carolina Rural Center - Boone ($673,955.86)
• North Carolina Rural Center - Watauga County ($336,977.56)
• Sales Tax Refund ($49,562.72)
• State of North Carolina 0% Loan [American Recovery and Reinvestment Act] ($756,480.06)

In addtion to the the elected officials noted above, other agencies and individuals involved in the project included:

• Town of Boone - Grant via North Carolina Rural Center
• Watauga County - Grant via North Carolina Rural Center
• Appalachian State University - Pump Station Easement
• North Carolina Council of State -- Appalachian State Easement
• North Carolina Department of Transportation - Encroachment Easement and Driveway Permit
• North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources - Grant, Load, and Permitting
• U.S Park Service/Blue Ridge Parkway - Easement
• John and Laura Lillis/Shari Prevatte - Meter Vault Easement
• High Country Council of Governments - Grant Assistance

In all, more than 50 civic, business leaders, and media representatives participated in or witnessed the ceremony. 

Long-term, the interconnect promises to insure each of the jurisdictions against water shortages due to some sort of emergency or drought conditions, but short-term there may be another significant benefit. Property managers suggest that home and business owners near the path of the interconnect may realize a savings in fire insurance premiums since a fully charged interconnect is accessible in the event of fire.

Comments: