News : City of Vinton To Conduct Survey

The City of Vinton will be conducting a door-to-door survey of 300 randomly selected households in the evening of Wednesday, July 21, 2010 between the hours of 4:30 and 7:00 PM. The survey will be conducted by AmeriCorps members on behalf of the city.

The purpose of the survey is to collect necessary information for a grant application to receive money through the federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.

The CDBG funds will assist the city in addressing sanitary sewer problems where storm water, during a rain event, leaks into the collection system. The additional system flow created by the storm water makes the sanitary system and treatment facility work harder costing more for the city and its residents.

Since the additional flow could lead to violations of the permit the city holds for its sanitary sewer system, it is likely the Iowa Department of Natural Resources will eventually require the city to address the situation. Recent overflows and bypasses at the sewer treatment facility have raised these concerns.

While the survey participation is not mandatory, the overall benefit to utility customers is great.

“We ask that everyone who is visited by an AmeriCorps member participate in the survey,” said Vinton City Coordinator Andy Lent, “If we receive the CDBG funds, we won’t need to ask for the money for the repairs from the customers through rate increases.”