Northland communities receive loans, grants for water infrastructure

The Minnesota Public Facilities Authority recently announced more than $197.6 million in loans and grants for wastewater and drinking water infrastructure in 15 cities.

Five of the communities selected for awards are in Northern Minnesota.

Funding for the projects primarily comes from the agency’s loan programs such as the Clean Water Revolving Fund and the Drinking Water Revolving Fund, with projects also able to receive grants from the Public Facility Authority’s various funds centered on protecting public health and the environment.

Northland community projects receiving funds include:

• Floodwood, $1.5 million to install water mains;
• Hibbing Public Utilities Commission, $6.5 million to replace an aging water main; 
• International Falls, $13.8 million to rehabilitate its water treatment plant;
• Park Rapids, $151,000 to replace existing lead service lines with copper lines;
• Western Lake Superior Sanitary District in Duluth, $49.6 million for four separate projects to upgrade its infrastructure. Work will include completion of a bypassing flow from the Knowlton Creek force main, a Lakeside neighborhood concrete interceptor pipe rehabilitation, removal and replacement of four 160-foot final clarifiers at the wastewater treatment plant, and completion of the Carlton Pump Station change order.

“Funding from the MPFA is crucial for towns across Minnesota to invest in public infrastructure that protects public health and the environment,” stated Department of Employment and Economic Development Commissioner Matt Varilek in a Thursday, April 9, news release.

“Keeping our water clean, drinkable and accessible is a catalyst to economic growth. By investing in the health and well-being of Minnesotans, we are investing in our economy for years to come and helping our state’s communities flourish.”