Courtney announces USDA grant and loan for Pomfret sewer project

WASHINGTON—Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-2) and Pomfret First Selectwoman Maureen Nicholson announced today that Pomfret will receive a $1,000,000 grant and a $6,500,000 loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development program.

"USDA Rural Development provides small towns in our region with access to low-cost loans and grant funding to support critical infrastructure projects that are vital to economic growth. I congratulate First Selectwoman Nicholson on this significant victory for Pomfret, and I will continue to work in Washington to maintain access to Rural Development funds for eastern Connecticut towns," Courtney said.

"I am thrilled to hear this funding is secured and we are able to move forward on this long-awaited project. We have been working closely with the three paying participants. This project is good for the Town, the Schools, the environment and the resurfacing of the Air Line Trail north," Pomfret First Selectwoman Maureen Nicholson said.

The funds will be used to install a sewer force main, through an agreement with three private entities, along the Airline Trail allowing for direct connection to the Putnam Wastewater Treatment Facility. They system will involve the construction of three pumping stations located at each of the private entities and approximately 37,000 linear feet force main along the Airline North State Park Trail. The installation of the force main will limit and contain industrial expansion within the project area and allow for preservation of the surrounding farmlands and land trusts.

Courtney led an effort to ensure that a new definition of "rural" proposed during debate over the 2014 Farm Bill was rejected, after it was determined that the new definition would exclude eastern Connecticut towns from eligibility for Rural Development grants and loans.