Well, the money must come from someplace. County law requires each water and  sewer service are to be self-sustaining.

Not only will each area have to repay its part of the $9.5 million, but also fund new capital improvement projects on the books. 

Now that the County is interconnecting these service areas at a cost of many millions, the issue of how to fairly charge each service area is complex.

Here are upcoming projects:

• Rehab Glen Riddle treatment plant - $3.6 million
• Extend sewer lines along Lewis Road $4 million to eliminate 60 septic systems.
• Increase emergency storage at OP $450,000
• Belt filter replace at OP $4.6 million
• Connect Mystic Harbor to water to Glen Riddle $2 million
• Rehab Glen Riddle water tower $750,000
• Connecct OP sewer to Glen Riddle $3.2 million
• Replace sewer main West OC $2 million
• Connect St. Martin by Bay water to OP $2.5 million
• Replace Newark water treatment plant $6 million
• Upgraade Mystic Harbor sewage plant $6.9 million
• Mystic Harbor building rehab $1.6 million
• Replace failing force main in OP - $1.7 million
• Connect River Run to OP sewage $2.1 million
• Connect Mystic Harbor effluent discharge to Glen Riddle $6.5 million
• Connect Mystic Harbor sewage to Assateague Point and Landings $3.6 million

These numbers tend to make one thing rather clear - the County Commissioners, on the advice of now rertired folks at the Worcester County Department of Public Works, approved sevice areas totally inadequate to handle the areas's water and sewer needs.

If Fiori thinks now is an emergency, wait until all the above projects are bonded or somehow collected from ratepayers.

$51.5 million plus the loans of $9.2 million = $60.7 million