U.S. Sen. John Boozman and U.S. Rep. Steve Womack joined U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development State Director for Arkansas David Branscum on Monday to present an $8.9 million USDA Rural Development grant to the city of Mountainburg to continue a multi-phase project expanding rural water service in north-central Crawford County.
“Water infrastructure is the most important thing in the world because without water you have no life,” Mountainburg Mayor Susan Wilson said.
Project details and scope
Mayor Susan Wilson said the project has long been a local priority, with paperwork tracing efforts to secure funding back decades. The work completed so far includes laying 63 miles of new water lines, building two new storage facilities and a pump house. The first phase of the project has provided clean drinking water access to about 340 additional residents.
- The USDA award to Mountainburg totals $8.9 million.
- Phase one installed 63 miles of piping and added two storage facilities and a pump house, reaching roughly 340 new customers.
- Planned second-phase work is expected to add about nine miles of water lines and a storage facility with an additional 100,000 gallons of capacity; part of that funding comes from community project funds Womack helped secure.
Federal role and lawmakers' comments
Boozman, who is chair of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, described the project as an example of investments the senator says are vital for rural communities. During a stop in Mountainburg that kicked off a Farm Bill 2.0 tour, Boozman said the work addresses residents who previously had to haul water or rely on inadequate sources.
Womack highlighted the difficulty many small towns face in financing large infrastructure projects, noting that without federal grants the cost burden could be prohibitive for a municipality. Local officials said an earlier estimate of the first phase was about $7 million, a figure that would have meant substantial monthly financing costs if the city had borrowed the full amount.
Next steps and funding mix
Mayor Wilson said the second phase will restore elements originally planned for phase one but cut when funding was insufficient. She said the next phase will add about nine more miles of distribution mains and construct an additional storage tank with roughly 100,000 gallons of capacity. Wilson said a portion of phase two funding will come from community project funding that Womack helped the city obtain.
USDA Rural Development grants and appropriations have been central to the project’s financing; officials did not provide a detailed break down of all funding sources at the presentation.
The award and public presentation mark the latest example of federal investments in rural water infrastructure in Arkansas, combining USDA grants and congressional support to expand access to potable water for residents who previously lacked reliable service.
