The Woolwich Township Pump Station handling water and sewer on the Route 322 corridor in Woolwich Township is now complete and operational. The facility, located behind a warehouse on the corner of Route 322 and Locke Avenue, became operational at the end of September. An official ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled.
The lines extend from Kenworth on Route 322 to Exit 2 of the turnpike. It will be mandatory for all businesses in the service area to hook up to water and sewer. Residents along this portion are not required to hook up, but will have the ability.
Woolwich Township Mayor Craig Frederick said that water and sewer connections are already completed for the two warehouses on Locke Avenue. Other business locations will have to go through an application process with Aqua Water, Gloucester County, and Woolwich Township before hooking up.
According to Frederick, the total cost of the water and sewer project was approximately $32 million. Woolwich’s share of the cost was $22 million, and Gloucester County is responsible for $10 million of the project. The pump station at Locke was $3.6 million. This is included in Woolwich’s part of the project cost.
“[The]Woolwich portion will be paid for through the PILOT agreements with the developers and the connection fees, not by the residents,” he stated.
The PILOT program is a negotiated incentive plan to encourage developers to invest in a municipality. These payments go directly to the municipalities and do not have to be shared with other local taxes (school, local, etc.). Five percent of the payments received go to the county. In Woolwich Township, the payments increase over time either as a percentage of revenue or based on the building’s square footage.
No further extensions of the water and sewer system are expected at this time in the township.
Frederick said the installation “finally allows development along 322 which will provide Woolwich with ratables and local establishments for our residents. The only remaining infrastructure component is the expansion of RT 322 of which the NJDOT and NJTPA are actively reviewing.
Frederick also stated that the completion of the Locke Avenue, Route 322 and Oak Grove Road intersection is planned for November. That intersection was straightened, widened in all directions, and a traffic signal was installed.
By Karen E. Viereck, Editor/Publisher
