Hermon gets grant to study water, sewer extension

HERMON – The town has received a community planning grant to research extending public water and sewer into the village area.

At the beginning of September, town officials were told their request for funds was granted, receiving $10,000 from the state for the project. The town agreed to supplement the state’s funds with $6,000, which they approved in the Aug. 10 council meeting.

“We don’t want to just draw more business [to the village area]; we want the right kind of businesses,” Ron Harriman, business and economic developer, said Monday. “It’s in the center of the village, and invariably not having water and sewer is an impediment to development. It increases cost and makes it difficult to develop sites at all.”

The council has identified extending water and sewer lines as its top priority for development. The grant application said the village was the most densely populated and highest growing area in Hermon.

The project would benefit low- and moderate-income people, help eliminate the health hazards of old or failed septic systems, increase water pressure for fire hydrants along Route 2 and make developing the land more affordable, the application said.

Public water and sewer lines run from Bangor into Hermon on Route 2, but end just beyond the Freedom Industrial Park and the Pinewood Business Park. Lines also run on the Cold Brook Road, but end just beyond the railroad crossing past the Cold Brook Business Park.

The new systems would extend one of the existing routes along Route 2 for about 2.8 miles. The town will decide which route is more cost-effective and continue with that plan. There are 157 properties on the main or side roads, which include 107 home lots and 20 commercial.

If the project moves forward, the town hopes to install the new system while the Maine Department of Transportation reconstructs Route 2. The town has noted a 2007 construction date, but if the Maine DOT postpones the job, the town will wait, Harriman said.

“We have a lot of work to do in the meantime [before any construction],” he said.