Aug. 21--PINEVILLE -- Officials with the Region I Planning and Development Council have told the Wyoming County Commission that a ruling by Circuit Judge Warren McGraw has put a $2.5 million sewer extension project in jeopardy.

The council's Dave Cole said an easement for the Oceana to Clear Creek project had been signed by land owner Beulah Kucek, but it was never recorded. Kucek has since died and her heirs do not want the easement recorded now.

That case came before McGraw. His ruling, which council attorney Bill Winfrey says was too broad, prevents Oceana from recording any remaining right-of-way easements for the project.

The funds for the project were provided through federal stimulus monies, and if the project is not back on track by Sept. 29, then the funding is lost and the project is dead, the officials said.

"He used a chainsaw when a scalpel would do," Winfrey told commissioners at Wednesday's meeting.

The town can go back to McGraw and ask that he modify his order by decreasing the ruling to one specific easement for the Kucek property, or the town can appeal to the state Supreme Court, Winfrey suggested.

However, there may not be enough time with either choice to save the project, according to officials.

In other business, commissioners changed Ravencliff-Saulsville-McGraws Public Service District boundaries to encompass the western Wyoming water project, which will use R.D. Bailey Lake as the source.

The $33.6 million project will add 565 customers to the PSD, according to Cole.

Areas included in the water project are Coal Mountain, Hanover, Ikes Fork, Rockhouse, and along U.S. 52 to the lake, according to clerk Mike Goode.

Eventually, but not immediately, a multimillion-dollar water treatment plant constructed for the lake project will be able to serve parts of Mingo and McDowell counties as well as Wyoming County, according to state Sen. Richard Browning, D-Wyoming.

In the future, the state Infrastructure Council could force aging water systems to connect to the new system rather than invest in expensive water treatment plants for small areas, Cole explained. That could force the older systems to tap into the R.D. Bailey Lake project.

The lake provides an unlimited supply of water, Cole told commissioners.

Ravencliff-Saulsville-McGraws PSD will be the government entity to make funding requests for the project, Cole explained.

The application for the lake project was submitted last week and includes $16.5 million in AML grant monies, $1 million from the Appalachian Regional Commission and $13.5 million from USDA Rural Development grants, along with a $2 million loan, among other funding sources, Cole said.

Commissioners also discussed their concerns with Browning about the rising cost of housing inmates in the regional jail system.

Commissioner Sam Muscari said this month's bill for Southern Regional Jail cost the county $73,245.

Commissioners budgeted $700,000 for jail costs this year, but have nearly surpassed that, Muscari told Browning.

The exorbitant costs are beginning to impact services to the county, commissioners said.

Browning said the regional jail system is now under a microscope due to huge funding increases and the fact it has been stockpiling money while increasing fees. He said legislators are looking for a solution.

--E-mail: mcbooks@register-herald.com

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