Officials Break Ground On New Water System For City Of Reform

REFORM, AL — The City of Reform on Thursday officially broke ground on a new city water system that represents the largest public works project for the city in half a century.

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The Reform Water System Project, according to city officials, will include a water test well, a new water well, a monitoring well, a new water storage tank, a new water treatment plant, and new pipes within the water pipeline system.

Additionally, a second phase of these project will see construction of two new lift stations, along with upgrades and improvements to the current lift stations and improvements to the city's sewer system.

The City of Reform is funding the $7 million project with money from the city's allocation of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and a grant from the Delta Regional Authority. The majority of the funding, however, will be administered by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management through the state's allocation of ARPA funding set aside for water and sewer infrastructure projects.

As part of the costs, Reform Mayor Melody Davis says necessary water system upgrades are estimated to surpass $6 million, while sewer upgrades and improvements will cost an estimated $1.5 million.

Davis also said in a press release that the city's water system has been repeatedly patched from several winter storms in 2021, a fire in 2020 at Nature's Earth — which emptied the water storage tank — and the recent winter storm during the week of Christmas. These problems have been widely documented, showing the precarious position many residents are put in when the system fails.

City officials point out the system remains on the verge of collapsing again and workers have been actively repairing a system that has no resiliency, limited capacity, and one that the city says is not adequate for the customer base.

Tuscaloosa-based Insite Engineering is contracted for engineering services, design and oversight and inspection, geological survey, and environmental assessment, while the West Alabama Regional Commission is administering the project.

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