FLINT, MI -- Emergency manager Darnell Earley says he's finalized the sale of a 9-mile section of water pipeline to Genesee County for $3.9 million and will use the proceeds for water system upgrades.
"The pipeline is of no use to the city," Earley said in a press briefing today, June 12. "The better use is to incorporate it into the new system that's being developed."
County Drain Commissioner Jeff Wright proposed the purchase of the existing pipeline, which the county needs as an intake to receive water from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department while the Karegnondi Water Authority pipeline to Lake Huron is built.
Although city officials decided to use Flint River water until the KWA project is complete, the county opted to continue buying Lake Huron water from DWSD in the meantime.
The 72-inch-diameter pipeline section that had been owned by the city was built more than 50 years ago -- with the rest of the DWSD pipeline to Lake Huron -- and stretches from the Genesee-Lapeer county line into eastern Genesee County.
The KWA could also eventually use the old section of pipe to connect to the new pipeline thats under contruction, and use it to service water customers in that area.
The Flint City Council voted against the deal last month, but failed to offer an alternative that produced as much or more revenue, according to the emergency manager.