The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality awarded a $3 million low-interest loan to Challis in Custer County to fund the construction of a new well, well house, booster station, transmission line and to perform leak detection on waterlines, according to a Department of Environmental Quality press release.
Challis qualified for a disadvantaged loan, with payment terms that favor the recipient, because the annual cost of drinking water for residential customers costs over 1.5% of the median household income.
In November’s elections last year, Challis residents voted to allow the city to sell $3.5 million in bonds to pay for improvements to the city’s water system, according to reporting from the Challis Messenger. Challis Mayor Mike Barrett told the Challis Messenger that the city already had $1.25 million in grant funds at the time.
Department of Environmental Quality Grants and Loans Bureau Chief MaryAnna Peavey said the loan is the funding that the Challis voters approved.
The loan is funded with the Department of Environmental Quality’s State Revolving Loan Fund, which is supported through grants from the Environmental Protection Agency. The loans have a 1.5% interest rate and can be paid over the course of 30 years.
— This article was originally published on idahocapitalsun.com.