Witt Utility Proposes Water Plan For Chestnut Hill

A plan is being hatched to help people who live in the community of Chestnut Hill get good water. Right now, the citizens who live in that nearby area of Jefferson County rely on a series of wells for water. That water has been found to be unsafe to bathe in much less drink…in fact e-coli was found in some of those wells. Now, Witt Utility District in Morristown has come up with a plan to link Chestnut Hill to their utility district through a series of pipes. About 152 miles of pipeline would have to be laid out to get the water to and serve homeowners in the Chestnut Hill area. 4000 homes have been identified as potential customers for the project. Witt Utility General Manager Benjamin Harris says they would need roughly half of those homes to sign up for tap fees to make the project feasible…as the cost would be around $100 million. Each home would have to pay a $750 tap fee to tap into the water lines…that water would come from a reliable source, the Nolichucky River. Harris says with all the miles of pipeline to be laid, it would take about 2 years to complete. There will be a meeting to discuss the plan with citizens of Chestnut Hill this Saturday morning. That meeting will be at 10am at the Chestnut Hill Fire Department and all residents are encouraged to attend.