Town of Exmore awarded $1 million block grant for wastewater improvements

EXMORE—In a competitive round of funding offered through the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCH), the Town of Exmore has been awarded a $1,000,000 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) in support of the town’s wastewater improvements project.

According to town officials, this advances Exmore’s goal for minimizing debt service for the critical upgrade and build out of the sewer system to keep use rates as low as possible for Exmore residents. “We appreciate and welcome DHCH’s support of Exmore’s wastewater improvements.” said Mayor Douglas H. Greer. “We recognize that through DHCH, Community Development Block Grant assistance goes to projects providing public water or sewer service for communities where 60 percent or more of the households have low to moderate-incomes. Exmore certainly qualifies, and our citizens, always at the center of our decision-making, will benefit from this grant.”

Exmore’s wastewater project, which will expand the current sewer service from roughly 350 household and business to over 900 hook-ups, will cost an estimated $17 million to complete. Additional funding sources include $3,005,300 in Principal Loan Forgiveness from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) on repayment on a loan from that department totaling $10 million from that department.  The $3,00r,300 DEQ loan forgiveness on the $10 million due leaves a balance of about $7 million with interest of 0.5%.

“Every grant, every loan opportunity takes us closer to our target of $17 million,” said Greer. “As we advance the project, aligned with the best interests of Exmore residents, we are grateful to the State of Virginia agencies for their ongoing support.”

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