CAPE MAY – Cape May is working to get projects to modernize its aging water system “shovel ready” to attract federal and state infrastructure dollars.
The once innovative desalination plant needs expansion, and the water distribution infrastructure is aging rapidly.
The Cape May water system is the primary support for all of Cape Island. Various arrangements have the city supplying water to West Cape May, Cape May Point, and the Coast Guard base and training facility, as well as supporting the needs of the city population, which can soar to nearly 50,000 individuals on any summer day.
As the new city administration took office in January, evidence of the distribution system’s precarious nature was readily apparent, with water main problems along parts of Maryland Avenue.
In February, the West Cape May commissioners authorized a billing dispute over an unusually large bill from the city. This was followed by a water leak problem in West Cape May and by what the West Cape May Commission meetings from April 14 termed a “water summit meeting.”
The summit’s result was an agreement by the city to reimburse West Cape May property owners for emergency plumbing repairs. At the June 15 Cape May City Council meeting, one resident questioned the reimbursements’ status, saying they were approaching $50,000.
While Mayor Zach Mullock questioned the amount, the point made is that the water distribution system, as well as the desalination plant, requires significant modernization. That modernization effort, according to a report to the previous council, may take a decade.
As the council listened to a report on water system projects, members heard of some of the challenges facing the small staff that maintains the city water/sewer infrastructure and the success the group has had in keeping the aging system functioning effectively.
Well 6 is “sucking sand,” but repairs will be completed before the Independence Day holiday spike in visitors. The old, asbestos Cape Island Creek water main has been successfully relined, and the project was completed on budget. Problems on Maryland Avenue were resolved.
The staff is showing a resilience that allows it to manage “pop–up” problems in the system, but the challenge will be finding sufficient funding to modernize it.
The desalination plant can pump just under 3 million gallons of water a day, which keeps it ahead of peak demand, at 2.3 million gallons. Yet, without the ability to bring other wells online, the city is vulnerable to well problems and remains, according to its water department officials, unable to meet all state “firm capacity” requirements.
The city raised its municipal hotel/motel occupancy tax from 2% to 3%. It also extended the tax to transient rental space, rooms, and homes rented through apps, like Airbnb. Both actions will go into effect in time for the 2022 season.
Several issues present competing claims on any new revenue, including the need for a new police station. Still, the intent is to use some of the new revenue for water system projects that will demand investments that cannot be accommodated through water/sewer system users’ fees.
The real answer is to be successful in attracting state and federal funds. The city’s response is to get those projects defined and “shovel ready,” so they compete effectively when funding opportunities present themselves.
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.
