5.1 Public Hearing - Small Cities Development Program

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are three to five miles from the urban area, there are resorts and seasonal lake homes, some of which are very large. With that in mind, the taxable market value of property, including all classes after exemptions, in the City of Pequot Lakes is $408,248,000 (2023, Crow Wing County). The per capita assessed value of the City of Pequot Lakes is $188,839. The City provides water and wastewater services to the downtown urban area that has 381 connections. This project will directly benefit this area, which includes part of the east shoreline of Sibley Lake. Those in the outlying areas that do not have public services, although they are part of the city population. The Pequot Lakes population includes 244 persons who are under five years of age, and 541 persons who are over 65 years of age. Additionally, there are 332 persons who have a disability, with 154, who have an ambulatory disability. These low income, and disabled persons, would have a difficulty exiting a home or moving to a new home, if the Gravdahl Lift Station failed and backed up into private lines and residential homes. The physical need for this project is to guard the public from contamination that will occur from breaks. Excess sewage leaking from forcemain cracks and breaks can pollute public waters, contaminate the drinking water supply, or flood streets or basements. This leakage will endanger the public health with disease and possible parasites. The forcemain in Pequot Lakes in its current physical state is breaking and needing repair SCDP funding will protect the public, especially the 1,142 LMI residents, from disease and illness. 2. Provide information on the current facility's age and condition, include all project components regardless of funding source. Narrative Answer: The Pequot Lakes wastewater system is outdated, obsolete and it is failing. It was constructed about 55 to 62 years ago. As a result, it is prone to breakage, difficult to get parts for repair and therefore leads to wastewater leakage and backups. The Pequot Lakes existing sanitary sewer system flows by gravity and through a series of lift stations to a main lift station. The main lift station, also known as the Gravdahl Lift Station, "is antiquated, in poor working condition and needs to be replaced," according to the Facility Plan. It was installed in the 1960's and is estimated to be 55 to 63 years of age. The Gravdahl Lift Station is the focus of the March 2022 Preliminary Engineering Report (PER). It has two 10 horsepower pumps that flow about 70,000 gallons of wastewater per day. Components of the lift station include pumps, motors, valves, piping, base elbows, access hatch, alarm/control equipment and concrete structure. Photos of the lift station, the existing control panel, and valve vault, which show wear and corrosion, are on page 6 of the PER. All the City's wastewater must run through the Gravdahl Lift Station. Failure of a lift station may cause backup of raw sewage, serious health risks and contamination of the environment. The forcemain, also at least 55 years of age, is in "poor" condition and breaks are occurring. The breaks are occurring in the joints of the Pequot Lakes forcemain. There are about 346 joints, as they are placed every Small Cities Development Program (SCDP) 2023 Full Proposal Public Facilities Infrastructure 7