Sparta Making Progress With Sewer Moratorium

Good news in Sparta after spending almost a year dealing with a sewer moratorium mandated by the state.

Mayor Jerry Lowery said the city has put in enough work to once again allow sewer taps.  The state has given the city an allowance of up to 125,000 gallons. He said this will allow the city to continue with more growth and development.

“We’re almost getting zero overflows on the last rain events we’ve had, so that’s great news what we’re doing is working,” Lowery said. “TDEC has given us these gallons to build so we’re allowed to let people build a new home and connect to sewer, or if a business comes in or a townhouse wants to be built.”

Lowery said the moratorium is still in place, but the city is making great strides. He said the city has spent close to $2 million trying to address the issues. Lowery said that includes manhole repairs and sewer drainage maintenance.

Lowery said they are unsure how long the moratorium will remain in place. He said the state has been very good to work with and helpful with keeping city administration informed about what needs to be done.

“We’re reporting every thirty days, we’ve got timelines of everything we need to be doing,” Lowery said. “(…) TDEC has been very kind to us in this endeavor and seeing what we have done up to this point. I’ve got to give great credit to our Public Works Department, Dillard Quick, our City Administrator, Tonya Tindle, and our City Attorney Caroline Sapp. There are these guidelines we’ve got to go by and they’ve been very diligent to make sure we’re meeting those.”

Lowery said they will continue moving forward as best as they can to continue to address the issues.