The House-Passed Funding Would Move the Motts Run Water Treatment Plant Expansion Forward & Help Construct a New 1-Million-Gallon Water Tower for the Massaponax and Thornburg Areas

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. House of Representatives yesterday voted to pass U.S. Representative Abigail Spanberger’s legislation that would provide $6,452,972 for critical water infrastructure projects in Spotsylvania County.

This investment — which Spanberger secured as part of a House-passed fiscal year (FY)2023 appropriations package — includes $3,452,972 for Phase 2 of Spotsylvania County’s Motts Run Water Treatment Plant expansion, which will help meet growing water demand as the region grows. This investment would further advance the engineering in Phase 1 into the detailed design work and development of technical specifications necessary for the completion of the project.

“This second round of federal funding for the Motts Run Water Treatment Plant expansion moves the project along to the design and development phase, just ahead of the bidding process,” said Ben Loveday, Assistant County Administrator for Community Operations, Spotsylvania County. “This $3.4 million in additional funding means we are a step closer to the eventual completion of the project, which will double the plant’s current capacity of 12 million gallons-per-day–meeting current and future water demands through 2045 for Spotsylvania County and the City of Fredericksburg. The county has experienced a rise in water consumption averaging just over 2% in annual increases for the past 10 years.  The Motts Water Treatment Plant expansion project will provide water service stability and reliability for the region as this growth continues into the future.”

Spanberger also secured $3,000,000 to help Spotsylvania County design and construct a new 1-million-gallon water tower to replace an existing 250,000 gallon tank. As the Massaponax and Thornburg areas of Spotsylvania County continue to experience consistent population growth, this project would increase capacity, help serve growing residential and commercial demands, and provide more fire flow duration.

“This $3 million in federal funding covers the entire cost of the design and construction of a new one-million- gallon water tower to replace the existing 250,000 gallon tank, providing needed support for the county’s growth and infrastructure, ” said Loveday. “The increased capacity will not only serve the significant residential and commercial growth underway in the Massaponax (I-95 exit 126) and Thornburg (I-95 exit 118) areas of the county, but the larger tank size also reinforces our fire service operations by providing additional flow duration in the event that it is needed during fire-fighting efforts.”

“As more Virginians make Spotsylvania County their home, we need to make sure the region’s physical infrastructure can keep up with increased demand. That’s why I’m proud to work directly with Spotsylvania County to make sure these water projects have the support they need to move closer to construction and eventual completion,” said Spanberger. “Earlier this year, I was proud to see the President sign into law significant funding for the Motts Run Water Treatment Plant expansion — and I’m glad to see that an even stronger investment could be on the way. Additionally, I’m glad the U.S. House voted to approve legislation that would significantly expand water capacity in Spotsylvania County via a new water tower. These are projects that are necessary for this region’s economic growth long into the future — and I want to thank Spotsylvania County officials for their commitment to the needs of their community.”

Earlier this year, President Joe Biden signed into law Spanberger’s legislation to provide $1,840,000 for Phase 1 of the Mott’s Run expansion.

The FY2023 appropriations package now goes to the U.S. Senate for further consideration.

BACKGROUND

For FY2023, the U.S. House of Representatives allowed for specific Community Project Funding requests — as it did in FY2022. Spanberger worked directly with community leaders in all 10 counties of the Seventh District to gather community-focused requests for her submissions. Click here for the full list of her submissions.

The Community Project Funding process was created to ensure that Members of Congress — in concert with the communities they represent — may submit direct applications for federal funding to support locally planned projects as part of the yearly appropriations process.

To be eligible, projects must be sponsored by local or state government entities or non-profit organizations and must be projects that would otherwise meet the qualifications to apply for federal grant funding. The purpose of Community Project Funding is to ensure direct, local engagement as part of the federal appropriations process. In line with this goal, funding applications needed to demonstrate significant local support for the projects.

Earlier this year, President Biden signed into law funding for 10 Virginia projects that Spanberger successfully secured as part of the U.S. House and U.S. Senate-passed FY2022 appropriations bill.

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