Pelzer Council approves $1.45 million bond issue

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For sewer upgrade

By Stan Welch

The Pelzer Town Council, meeting in a special called meeting, and with a bare quorum last Wednesday afternoon (May 28) , gave first reading approval to a bond ordinance authorizing the sale and issuance of two bonds, totaling $1.45 million to finance upgrades and improvements to the waterworks and sewer system of the town.

The bonds will allow the construction and conclusion of the second phase of the town’s wastewater system, and bring the total cost, including almost four million dollars in grants awarded to the town, to approximately 5.1 million dollars.

The bonds will mature forty years from the date of issuance, and a payment of the interest only will be due after the first year. After that time, principal and interest will be due on a monthly basis, an obligation which calculations by the RDA and bond attorney Margaret McGee indicate will require $2700 each month to satisfy.

Town attorney Jimmy King conceded that the increases in the water and sewer rates are going to be uncomfortable for many. “But we simply have no other options. We have to meet the standards for our wastewater system, and this is the only way we can do that.”

Second reading, along with a public hearing on the ordinance, is scheduled for the regular Council meeting on June 8th.

Council recently tabled a vote on increasing rates and will address the issue in September.