Funding totaling $2,710,000 is going to both Hardy County and the Eastern Panhandle town of Romney as part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Development Grant Program.
The program is part of a commitment by the USDA to “improve the economy and quality of life in rural America,” according to the agency’s website.
“The funding from the USDA will help more West Virginians reliably access clean water and make distribution more efficient for all residents,” U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., said in a release.
Money for Romney will help upgrade the town’s water distribution lines and treatment facilities. The funds are being awarded as a combination of loan and grant funding, with $1,554,000 being loaned alongside an extra $850,000 in grant money to help.
Hardy County’s Public Service District is also receiving a $291,000 grant to help construct new water and waste disposal facilities in Moorefield. Flooding in June of 2018 damaged the county’s water lines as well as the district’s office building.
The grant will help construct a new office building for the agency at the Robert C. Byrd-Hardy County Industrial Park, including a garage for maintenance and storage of parts, vehicles and equipment.
The construction project previously received $1,460,000 in loan funding, according to a release from the USDA.
The USDA previously announced another $10 million to help improve water safety in the state last December.