MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The Morgantown Utility Board (MUB) of Directors received an update on several projects, including the Source Water Protection Plan and renovation of MUB general offices in Morgantown.
At the Flegal Dam and Reservoir grass is growing and the work is substantially complete. General Manager Mike McNulty said some of the newly planted trees have died and will be replaced this fall.
“We’ve completed our reclamation plan we agreed to with BOPARC and the city of Morgantown regarding the road down into White Park, so it looks really nice.”
Assistant General Manager and Chief Engineer, Rich Rogers, said they are partnering with the West Virginia Department of Highways (DOH) for improvements to the access road from the Upper Cobun Creek area to Kingwood Pike. That work includes widening, patching, and drainage work, and some of that work will take place this year.
“The snow is going to fly soon, so we’re probably pushing it,” Rogers said. “I think the culvert repairs will get done for sure, and I think some ditching and some of the work will get done, but whether or not the paving gets done, I sure hope so.”
On August 25, McNulty said the new MUB weather gauge system recorded 1 1/2 inches of rain in a 30-minute period. The system showed engineers where the greatest and most intense rainfall fell and where potential damage could be.
As a result, damage to the Baird Street Combined Sewer Box Restoration Project was discovered. The rain fell with such pressure that it forced the casting to separate from the drainage structure, allowing the water to infiltrate and damage the new asphalt. The project was very important because it stabilized the hillside and separated storm and sanitary sewers for new development.
“A sinkhole developed near the retaining wall, but the wall did not move; it’s in great shape and structurally sound,” McNulty said.
Baird Street repairs are expected to be completed in October.
McNulty also told the board that half of the rights-of-way needed for the Popenoe Run Drainage project have been secured, and consultants are working through stream permit comments provided by the Army Corps of Engineers.
“We were just talking to Damien (Director of Engineering & Public Works for the city of Morgantown) about flood plain permits, and I think those are about to be issued as well,” McNulty said. “So, I think everything is moving along nicely.”
Board members also heard an update on the source water protection plan from downstream strategies. The measure was passed into law following the Elk River chemical spill code that went into effect in 2014 to protect public water systems and wellheads.