Cities of Greensboro and Reidsville Reach Water Supply Agreement 

Officials from the City of Greensboro and the City of Reidsville announced today a tentative agreement for a new supply of water from Reidsville to Greensboro. Negotiations regarding the specific terms have been underway for several months. The Greensboro City Council is expected to officially approve the plan at its April 6 meeting, while Reidsville's City Council expects to take similar action at its April 14 meeting.

The new supply of water for Greensboro is expected to be a key element in addressing Greensboro's water shortage until Randleman Dam comes online in three to four years. According to Greensboro City Manager Ed Kitchen, the Reidsville supply, along with other smaller supplies from Winston-Salem and High Point, should allow Greensboro to avoid the type of severe water shortage situation which occurred last fall. "Reidsville, along with our other connections, gives us an insurance policy against an extended dry period in the next few years," said Kitchen. "We still must concentrate strong efforts on conserving and using water wisely, but we should be able to avoid the crisis type situation we experienced last year."

Reidsville City Manager Kelly Almond noted that the agreement maintains a safe supply of water for Reidsville while providing a strong source of revenue for that community. "We have safeguards built into the agreement that will maintain the combination of what we pump for our customers and what we sell to Greensboro well below the safe yield of our lake," according to Almond.

Mayor's Carolyn Allen of Greensboro and Jay Donecker of Reidsville hailed the agreement as an excellent example of intergovernmental cooperation which will benefit both cities. Donecker noted that not only will the agreement allow Reidsville to lower water bills for its citizens, it will also allow new development to take place between the two cities along the Highway 29 corridor. Allen pointed out that previous cooperative efforts along that corridor had been made between adjacent bodies in the form of support for interstate designation of Route 29 to Interstate I 785.

Water from Reidsville is expected to be available to Greensboro within seven to 10 months. Early in negotiations, both cities agreed to utilize the same engineering firm - Finkbeiner, Pettis and Strout. Engineering work for expansion of the Reidsville plant as well as the installation of the main line between the two communities is already complete. In addition, Greensboro already laid a short portion of the necessary line in some low-lying wet areas while those areas were dry last fall. Greensboro has also already worked out right-of-way agreements with the state of North Carolina and the railroad along Highway 29 on the Guilford County side. Once both governing bodies have officially approved the agreement, bids will be let for all of the construction and the contract will be structured so that the line can be built as rapidly as possible.

The line itself will be sized so as to allow for an even greater flow of water in the future if both communities later determine that this is in their best interests. Initially, the agreement envisions from 2.5 - 5 mgd coming to Greensboro. The line, however, which will be a 30 inch pipe, could carry as much as nine to 10 mgd if needed sometime in the future.

Total construction costs for the plant expansion and the line are expected to be in the $10 - 11 million range. Greensboro will utilize current bond proceeds to pay for this construction and will adjust rates in the future to replenish those proceeds for other water and sewer projects. The Reidsville project, including the cost of water at a rate of $1.02/ccf, is expected to have an overall impact of approximately 6 percent on Greensboro's water & sewer bills. That amounts to about $1 per month to the average single family home owner. "We think that is a bargain for the peace of mind this will offer Greensboro residents," said Mayor Allen. Mayor Donecker noted that Reidsville customers will see a decrease in their overall water bills as a result of the deal. "Our citizens will get a nice reduction in their bills and Reidsville gets the added benefit of greater development opportunities without any direct expense." said Donecker. "We have sufficient water to help a neighbor city in need and we can do this with no danger to our community," he said. "This will also provide a source of revenue to address several infrastructure improvements which are badly needed."

Since it will be late 1999 or early 2000 before Reidsville water starts flowing to Greensboro, Kitchen addressed the potential for a water shortage between now and then. "While the possibility for a problem still exists," said Kitchen, "the likelihood is far less than in the past, even with a dry period similar to last year. First, we anticipate restricting additional growth to our system until Reidsville is on line. I will be proposing some specifics on this issue to City Council at its April 20 meeting," said Kitchen. In addition Greensboro will utilize its existing ties to Winston Salem and High Point to keep the reservoirs as full as possible even before any dry conditions develop.

Both Kitchen and Williams emphasized that conservation programs will remain a top priority with the city, including a stepped up public education effort on the benefits and methods of using water wisely. "These additional supplies should in no way be a signal to our citizens and customers that water is abundant and can be wasted." Kitchen said. "Greensboro should always focus on conservation, regardless of the level of our lakes and any other supplies, including Randleman."