It's been a long process, filled mainly with meetings and attempts to get money to pay for it, but the process of creating Madisonville's new sewer plant is finally putting feet on the ground.
Gary McGill of McGill and Associates gave the Madisonville Mayor and Aldermen an update on the project in the board's November meeting, telling them it is time to start getting easements so the sewer lines can be installed from Madisonville to Vonore.

"There are 14 tracks of property we need to get easements on," McGill said. "We'll contact the property owners by phone and set up an appointment to go talk with them. We're fixing to hit the ground running with this."
McGill wants to start taking bids on the project, but that can't be done until the easements are acquired.

"We'd like to have bids to choose from by Christmas," he said, "and start construction in the spring."
Estimates for when the plant will be fully operational have ranged from the summer of 2011 to the end of that same year. The old Madisonville sewer plant was deemed no longer viable after Bat Creek, where the plant dumped treated water, was said to contain more treated water than run off water.
If some property owners don't want a sewer line running across their property, McGill said other routes would be sought.

"There are different directions we can go in," he said. "If someone's disagreeable, we'll talk with other property owners. But even with that possibility, everything seems to be right on track."
In other business, the board discussed the need for turning lanes at the intersection of Ball Play Road and Highway 411. Commissioner Bill Spradlin said there have been four wreck fatalities at the intersection since the red lights were put in and countless other accidents.

"People still run the red lights," Spradlin said. "There are more wrecks there than you realize."
Mayor Alfred McClendon said the state is going to study the intersection to see if turning lanes would make a difference. Alderman Sherry Anderson pointed out that the intersection of 411 and Patterson Street (below McDonald's) is also a hazardous area.

michael.thomason@advocateanddemocrat.com | 442-4575