Word is expected May 8 from the regional office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, on the funding needed to break ground on the multi-million dollar Lakeland Regional Sewer District project.

The district’s board members said during their regular meeting Thursday night at the North Webster Community Center they were expecting an imminent decision about whether the several million dollars needed to pay for the construction of a sewer district in North Webster and the surrounding lakes will come in the form of a loan — which will mean higher monthly rates for users — or a grant, which will significantly lower that rate.

Discussion indicated regardless of the monthly fee the hookup charge will be around $110-$115. That’s a combination of the actual cost for an inspector to check the connection — about $100 — and an administrative fee.

During the initial hookup phase someone will likely need to dedicate himself to the inspections full-time, it was noted, and board member Bob Marcucilli recommended putting a person and a trailer in a central location to handle that task. Afterward an employee could probably handle the once or twice a month average rate of hookup requests, said Casey Erwin of DLZ, the project’s engineers.

Erwin also fielded questions during the meeting about the timing of the project. Of primary concern was whether the contractors who had submitted construction bids would honor those bids past their expiration date, which was several months ago. Three of the bidders previously agreed to a 60-day extension and were now being asked for a second, 30-day extension while the district waits for the response on funding.

“Informally, they said they don’t think it will be a problem,” he told members. He added the delay shouldn’t put the project very far behind schedule.

“If the award would have come in during March, we would have started in April. So maybe we’ve lost two months. But these guys are ready to go as soon as we get word: so maybe we don’t have two full construction seasons, May to November, but we’re pretty close.”

Anticipating word from the USDA, the board then scheduled a meeting for 6 p.m. Wednesday, May 13, for a first reading of the rate ordinance associated with the project.

Mike Dewald, board member, said he also received information Thursday about the district’s options for assisting property owners for whom the hookup or monthly fee is unaffordable. The district will first need to determine the affordability index of the project, then determine who falls below it. It will have to establish the subsidy parameters and find an organization in the area willing to fund them.

“There’s no federal or state funding for this sort of thing. It has to be the county,” Dewald said.

In response to a question from the audience, President Jim Haney clarified how the hookup fees will be charged to property owners with multiple lots. Using the example of one home that sits on three lots, he said that while the district will have the right to charge the debt service portion of the fee — the part that pays back the construction loan — on all three properties, only one is actually producing sewage so only one will be charged for sewer service.

Another patron brought up the issue of about 60 homes in the planned district that are refusing to hook up to the system. Haney noted that because whole motivation for the project is a mandate issued by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, forced hookup will be pursued.

“They will be responsible for all the fees associated with a forced hookup,” including litigation fees, he noted, which means voluntary hookup will prove to be the less expensive option.