THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, February 19, 1997 TAG: 9702190378
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TERRI WILLIAMS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: 44 lines
The City Council tonight will again consider permits Norfolk needs to expand its pump station and replace a 3-mile section of pipe near Kings Fork Road to handle the increased flow of water from the Lake Gaston pipeline project.
The council has delayed action on the permits for nearly a year.
City Council members say the delay is due to environmental concerns over the impact the project might have on nearby private wells.
Several Suffolk and Norfolk officials have privately said the permit is being used as a bargaining chip in Suffolk's ongoing negotiations with Norfolk for water.
If Suffolk does not decide within a year, Norfolk can seek the permits in court, officials said. Planning Director Paul E. Fisher said Norfolk officials applied and paid fees seeking the conditional use permits on Feb. 20, 1996.
Suffolk City Manager Myles E. Standish refused comment about the permits Tuesday.
Norfolk Assistant City Manager Sterling B. Cheatham also declined to say what Norfolk would do should Suffolk again delay action.
Norfolk needs the permits to meet its contractual obligation to Virginia Beach to treat the Gaston water and transport it from the end of the pipeline in Isle of Wight County to a treatment plant in Norfolk. Currently, Virginia Beach buys more than 30 million gallons of water a day from Norfolk. That water would be available to sell to Suffolk once Virginia Beach turns to Lake Gaston water.
One section of the pipeline runs from the Western Branch pump station to Red Top, near Kings Fork Road and Virginia Route 10; the next section runs from Red Top to Nansemond Parkway; and the last section runs underneath the Nansemond River.
The Western Branch pump station needs to be moved out of a flood plain and expanded.
The $250 million Lake Gaston pipeline project would bring up to 48 million gallons a day to Virginia Beach and 10 million gallons a day to Chesapeake. Franklin and Isle of Wight also have an option to take up to 1 million gallons a day.
Construction on the pipeline resumed early this year, despite a pending federal decision on permits required to build it.