LEWISBURG (WVDN) – On Monday, Oct. 3, a groundbreaking ceremony took place at the Lewisburg Water Plant with Lewisburg Mayor Beverly White welcoming Gov. Jim Justice as guest of honor.
White said to Gov. Justice in her introduction, “Thank you for that $7 million that took us to the finish line!”
White was referring to the state’s assistance in funding the water plant upgrade project, also funded with $39.834 million from a USDA loan, $12.914 million from a USDA grant, $7,586,106.26 from a WDA EEGF grant, $165,000 from IJDC grant, and $2,968,893.74 from the city of Lewisburg.
Bids for the project were opened on March 22, 2022 and came in overestimates due to soaring material prices and supply-chain issues.
The last-minute rally from the state put the project in gear and prayers were answered in the process. Without the state grant contributions, the bid would expire, and the project would not be funded.
White said, “City Manager Misty Hill did the hard work. I just led the background support.”
White said she prayed daily for the city and for the county as well.
“The very thing that gives us life is water,” Justice said. “Without any question, water is essential in every way and in every aspect of our lives,” said Justice.
Currently, Lewisburg’s water treatment plant operates 24 hours a day at nearly 100% capacity. As a result, this city has been forced to issue boil water notices and endure water outages caused by mechanical failures, source water contamination, and leaks that are hard to find due to the karst terrain.
The city of Lewisburg is the regional water supplier in Greenbrier County and serves approximately 12,000 customers in Lewisburg, Ronceverte, Renick, Frankford, Maxwelton, Fairlea, and Caldwell.
