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Metropolitan Utilities District
7350 World Communications Drive Omaha NE 68122
www.mudomaha.com
Facebook.com/mudomahane Twitter.com/mudomahane Instagram.com/mudwaterontap Linkedin.com/company/mudomaha Nextdoor.com/agency-detail/ne/Omaha/metropolitan-utilities-district-1/
Rick Kubat
Governmental Relations Attorney
rick_kubat@mudnebr.com
+1 (402) 651-6902
Yes
Please see Attachment 1 for the complete team. The grant application co-authors are Megan Walter, Manager, Customer Engagement, and Tracey Christensen, APR, Director, Communications.
Please see Attachment 1.
Metropolitan Utilities District is a customer-owned public utility, which has provided safe, high quality drinking water to the community since 1913. We deliver water to more than 200,000 customer-owned, residential service lines, serving a population of more than 700,000 in the metro Omaha area. Of those 200,000 lines, approximately 16,000 are presumed to be comprised of lead and are primarily located east of 72nd Street in North and South Omaha. Please see Attachment 2 – Location of all lead service lines in our service territory. To improve system reliability, the District began a decades-long program in 2008 to replace aging water mains. During the replacement of these mains, when the District comes into contact with a customer-owned lead water service line, we replace it at no cost to the homeowner. At the current pace, we are replacing approximately 15 miles of main and between 100-200 lead service lines per year. In addition to our infrastructure replacement efforts, the District conducted a pilot lead service line replacement project in July 2022, replacing 23 lead service lines in three neighborhood blocks. We selected three blocks, all in disadvantaged Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs), based on several factors, including the location of three in-home childcare centers. In addition, the City of Omaha was going to repair and repave the streets in the area and coordinating our work with the city reduced costs and inconvenience to the homeowners in the area. Our plan would be to continue this process of coordination with the City of Omaha whenever possible. This pilot project allowed the District to glean information and lessons learned to streamline the process and be better prepared for scalability. If we were to keep at the current pace, it could take more than 80 years to remediate all lead service lines. However, with an infusion of additional funding, the District can create a dedicated program to get the lead out as quickly as possible, improving the economic wellbeing of our customers and their overall health.
Project ROLL (Remove Omaha Lead Lines)
110000000.0
30000000.0
Capital project
The over-arching goal of Metropolitan Utilities District’s lead service line replacement program is to remove a significant public health hazard. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, there is no safe level of lead. Even low levels of lead in the blood of children often result in behavior and learning problems, lower IQ, hyperactivity, slowed growth and hearing problems. In rare cases, ingestion of lead can cause seizures and even death. The District owns and is responsible for the water mains. We do not have any detectable level of lead in the water within our mains. However, the problem occurs when the water leaves the water main and enters the homeowner-owned service line, where leaching can occur in old lead service lines. Please see Attachment 3 - “What’s Yours? What’s Ours” for illustration on ownership of water service line. Lead service lines exist almost exclusively in older parts of communities because plumbers stopped using lead around 1940. The problems exist primarily in disproportionately impacted areas east of 72nd Street, specifically North and South Omaha. Of the 16,000 known and presumed lead service lines approximately 9,000 are in disadvantaged communities as identified in the Qualified Census Tracts (QCTs). To illustrate the impacts to this population, in the QCTs, the median household income ranges from $20,000 to less than $60,000 a year, according to data from the United Way of the Midlands. The average cost to replace a lead service line is approximately $8,000, which equates to up to 38% of annual household income. In addition, there are more than 31,000 children under age 18 in the QCTs who are possibly being exposed to lead in drinking water. With the $30 million, the District will expend the funds starting in September 2023 through the end of 2026, with the goal of replacing approximately 3,400 lead service lines.
Please see Attachment 4.
0.55
Fundamental Change (i.e., a proposal that will continue to elevate North or South Omaha's presence and perception within the region, significantly improving the lives of area residents through physical development) Long-Lasting Economic Growth (i.e., a proposal that will foster gainful employment opportunities and financial investment in the area, leading to the creation of generational wealth and widespread economic vitality in North and South Omaha) Transformational (i.e., a proposal that will help energize, recharge, or spur significant and favorable advancements in North or South Omaha's function or appearance)
Other Infrastructure (i.e., develop or improve broadband, business districts, roadways, sewer, etc.) Policy (i.e., develop or improve context-sensitive education, finance, health, training, zoning, etc.) Quality of Life (i.e., create or enhance natural spaces, mixed uses, parks, safety, etc.) Sustainable Community (i.e., create or enhance housing, services, education, civic uses, recreation, etc.)
This proposal will bolster community sustainability through implementation of safe infrastructure to enhance the health and economic wellbeing of families in North and South Omaha affecting generations to come. Removing lead service lines will help reduce the risk of lead exposure to pregnant women, infants and children, improving the quality of life and health of some of the most vulnerable members of the community. Other benefits include meaningful job creation and higher property values in the North and South Omaha communities. According to a national study, it is estimated that replacement of a lead service line will increase a home sale price by an average of 3 to 4 percent. (Excerpt from “Lead Pipes, Prescriptive Policy and Property Values; Author Adam Theising; Environmental and Resource Economics volume 74; September 20, 2019.) The lead service line replacement program will generate partnerships between public and private organizations, with aligned goals and policies to improve the quality of life for members of the community. We continue to advocate for policies that support equitable access to safe drinking water, no matter where you live.
The workshops identified the following weaknesses: • Systemic disinvestment in urban infrastructure • Failing infrastructure • Lack of jobs • Lack of responsibility for community conditions and economic resources • Lack of quality entry level and next level housing The workshops identified the following opportunities: • Infrastructure: broadband and public streets, alleys, sewers, parks, sidewalks, lack of equitable investment • Public-private partnerships creating community investment/momentum and support. Systemically, lower-income populations have had to move into older neighborhoods with aged and failing infrastructure. This proposal directly addresses this issue by the replacement of lead service lines that were installed prior to 1940. The proposal will meet the gap of disinvestment in urban infrastructure by indirectly granting funds to North and South Omaha residents with lead service lines to have the infrastructure improved in their homes. We would be taking responsibility for the process from this point forward. The District administers the entire process, by hiring contractors, overseeing inspections and restoration of property, taking the financial and coordination burdens from the homeowner. Metropolitan Utilities District cannot achieve this transformational program alone. We will need the help of numerous local plumbers, contractors, engineers and restoration crews to name a few. This proposal outlines the projected creation and ongoing need for local skilled workers, providing meaningful jobs not only for the next three years but for many years to come.
When the federal government allocated American Rescue Plan (ARPA) dollars to states, cities, counties and tribal governments, they advocated for ARPA to be used to solve the public health hazard of lead service lines. This was even mentioned by the President in his 2022 State of the Union address. As previously stated, the lead service line replacement program will create long-term, good-paying jobs which will help generate economic development within the community. In addition, replacing this aged infrastructure will increase property values for homeowners and attract new investment to the community. If awarded grant funds in April 2023, we estimate the RFQ/RFP and M.U.D. Board of Directors approval process will take place April through August 2023. The program will launch in September 2023 and conclude by December 2026.
We estimate 40 to 50 new jobs will be created over the course of the program.
We estimate 40 to 50 jobs will be created as this is a long-term project.
We estimate the jobs will be more permanent.
Wage levels range from $20 to $50 per hour.
We already have current relationships with local contractors and plumbers, but we will be expanding our portfolio to include more North and South Omaha businesses. With this additional funding, we are prepared to scale up the project and will need additional contractors to complete the work in the allotted timeframe.
The program will create long-term, good-paying jobs which will help generate economic development within the community and replacing this aged infrastructure will increase property values for homeowners. As previously stated, a national study found that replacement of a lead service line will increase a home sale price by an average of 3 to 4 percent. If the District is awarded this grant, the citizens of North and South Omaha with lead service lines will indirectly be receiving grants to have the infrastructure improved in their homes with the benefit of the District handling the removal process.
In addition to the above, removing lead service lines will help reduce the risk of lead exposure to pregnant women, infants and children, improving the quality of life and health of some of the most vulnerable members of the community for future generations. According to E2, a national, non-partisan group of business leaders and investors, “Previous studies have estimated that $22,000 of societal and health benefits are generated for every lead service line replaced as a result of lower cardiovascular disease alone. Since in many states lead service lines are more likely to exist in low- and moderate-income communities and communities of color, and since Black and Latino children are disproportionately exposed to lead, replacing these pipes will also greatly benefit low income and minority households.” (Excerpt from “Report: Replacing Hazardous Lead Pipes Will Result in 560,000+ Job-Years; Drive $100B+ in Economic Activity,” www.e2.org, August 3, 2021.)
In April 2022, the District reached out to city officials in Newark, New Jersey, which is a model city for lead service line replacement, replacing over 24,000 LSLs in less than three years. They shared best practices and lessons learned, which helped the District bring those ideas to address Omaha’s challenges. Newark was also the inspiration behind the July 2022 pilot project when the District replaced 23 LSLs in a similar fashion, going block by block. We continually research best practices from cities all over the country as well as from the EPA and American Water Works Association.
Estimate health benefits; Estimate amounts of wages paid – infused into economy; Estimate amount of the enhanced property values; Number of lead service lines replaced; Number of people and crews per contractor
Outcomes would be tracked by the project manager, overseen by the District.
Yes. If the District is awarded this funding and begins replacing customer-owned lead service lines at no cost to the property owner, we believe the right thing to do would be to replace the remaining lines to be fair and equitable to all customers. This will take a significant investment by the District to achieve this goal. Outside investments will help relieve the burden of the cost of this project on our ratepayers. In addition, we will be seeking other investments from the philanthropic community and other grant opportunities.
Yes
The District has consulted with the City of Omaha, Douglas County Public Health Department, the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services and the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy about the public health hazard of lead service lines and the challenges faced in removing them. We have a network of non-profit agencies who distribute utility assistance funds from the District’s Home Fund program. We plan to utilize these relationships for education, awareness and promotional plans around the lead service line replacement program. We will continue our relationship with Omaha Public Schools, which provides educational outreach of the District’s programs to families of students. To name a few, the District partners with: United Way of the Midlands; Together Inc.; Family Housing Advisory Services; Heartland Family Services; Latino Center of the Midlands; East African Development Association of Nebraska; St. Vincent DePaul; Catholic Charities Juan Diego Center and St. Martin de Porres Center; The Salvation Army; Habitat for Humanity (Energy Efficiency Assistance Program)
The District has formal agreements with the non-profit agencies through a contracted administrator.
No
Please refer to the Attachment 5 - a map showing more than 9,000 lead service lines in the QCTs. The District will, by all means necessary, ensure equitable replacement of lead service lines in QCTs in North and South Omaha. The District will prioritize the locations of replacement work for streets that are scheduled for repaving or other maintenance by the City of Omaha to minimize disruptions to neighborhoods. Other factors in determining which blocks to target include the location of childcare centers and households that receive federal utility assistance through the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Please see Attachment 6 - illustration of households with lead service lines who are recipients of 2021 state LIHEAP dollars.
Within one or more QCTs
For a map of the locations, please see Attachment 5 and for the Data Table of Uses, see Attachment 10. The final two bullets are N/A.
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Should the District be awarded funds, a Request for Qualifications/Proposal (RFQ/RFP) process will be immediately implemented. The District tracked the costs from the July 2022 pilot project to estimate the cost per replacement. In addition, the District has extensive experience tracking the costs of lead service line replacement through our current infrastructure replacement program.
No
The District estimates $110 million as the cost to replace all lead service lines in the distribution system, not including administrative fees and inflationary costs. We are requesting $30 million as we believe this is the amount we can spend within the allotted timeframe to develop and implement a robust and sustainable program. Also attached are two letters of support from the health director with the Douglas County Health Department and a physician with Children's Hospital and Medical Center.
The District will utilize 100% of the LB 1024 grant funds to replace lead service lines. This project qualifies as one of the intended purposes for American Rescue Plan allocations.
Yes
If we receive the grant funding, we will primarily be contracting out to plumbing companies and other contractors, as well as using some internal staff for assistance. The District will be overseeing the money and the administration of the program.
The District will consider issuing bonds, Nebraska State Revolving Fund, pursue matching funds from philanthropic community, other grant opportunities or potential water rate increases.
We do not have definitive dates for the other funding sources. Decisions will need to be vetted by our senior management team and board of directors.
No.
Yes.
The District can complete this in smaller components and whatever money we receive would launch this program.
The District has operational funds to replace lead service lines encountered in infrastructure replacement projects through water rates, which are paid by our customers. As stated previously, the District will pursue all state, federal and outside funding sources to see this program to completion.
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
Additional Location Documents (see application for list) Data table of uses (breakdown of how the requested funds will be used for your proposal) Organizational Chart Plans and detailed descriptions, including pictures and a map of the site location/surrounding area Pro Forma Proposal Budget/Sources and Uses Request Rationale Documentation Schedule