Bolton gets $500K from state for septic system to serve town buildings

Joseph Villanova, Journal Inquirer, Manchester, Conn.
·2 min read

Sep. 26—BOLTON — Town officials announced Friday that they have received a $500,000 state grant for construction of a septic system that would serve three town buildings in the center of town.

The grant comes from the Small Town Economic Assistance Program, STEAP, which allows smaller municipalities throughout the state to apply for capital project funding.

First Selectwoman Pamela Sawyer said the town would provide $125,000 toward the project, which will provide an updated septic system for Town Hall, Bentley Memorial Library, and the resident state trooper building.

"For public health reasons, it is important to work on these septic issues that are quite old and undersized," Sawyer said.

Sawyer said the town expects work to begin next year after a thorough review of the project by the town engineer and any applicable commissions.

Sawyer said the idea to upgrade the septic system was put forward two decades ago, and some preliminary work was done around six years ago.

She was involved in the creation of the grant program while serving in the General Assembly, she said.

"With over 100 small towns in this state, smaller amounts of dollars go a long way to help solve a local problem," Sawyer said.

Sawyer said the state Office of Policy and Management, which administers the grant program, had accidentally excluded the town's approved grant from the list in its initial publication.

The list has since been updated to include the septic sewer project.

Regardless, Bolton is "grateful of OPM for their consideration and understanding of the great value this has for such a small town," Sawyer said.

The current list of awards from the grant project on the OPM's website now includes the Bolton project, and a total of $31.8 million in grant awards.

Other grants awarded to local towns include $500,000 to Coventry for its first softball field; $500,000 to Glastonbury for community center outdoor space improvements; and $500,000 to Tolland for renovation of its tennis courts.

Somers and South Windsor also will receive $237,000 and about $478,000, respectively, for road reconstruction, while Stafford will receive $500,000 for both roadwork and improvements to the Stafford Middle School parking lot.

Ellington was granted $500,000 for improvements to the Hall Memorial Library parking lot, and a new pedestrian bridge in Hebron will get just over $493,000, while Andover's municipal parking hub will receive $275,000 in state funds.

Joseph covers Manchester and Bolton for the Journal Inquirer.