CLEVELAND, Tenn. – The Cleveland Utilities Board on Wednesday approved contracts for work to bring electric and water services to the new Whirlpool site.
The board also agreed to raise $8.75 million from bond sales for future improvements and service extension. The bonds would include $6.5 million for the electric system and $2.25 million for the water system.
The board agreed to pay $914,000 for two large electric power transformers that will be installed at a substation yet to be built. That’s about $100,000 less per transformer than the same units bought last year from the same company, said Jimmy Isom, CU manager of engineering.
The lower price and faster-than-usual delivery is partly because of economic conditions, he said. The transformers will be delivered in April.
To get ready for the new Whirlpool plant, a power line and a water line that bisect the site must be moved and services ready by July 1, 2011, officials said.
The board also approved a $73,800 contract with R.W. Beck, a Hendersonville, Tenn., firm, for engineering consulting services to design the substation that will be built on CU property off Old Powerline Road.
“We’ve had some plans to put a substation in this area already. So this project has just speeded up our plans,” CU General Manager Tom Wheeler said.
Craig Mullinax, Water Division manager, said Chastain Construction of Ooltewah already is at work laying about 4,000 feet of pipe to the site. The contract price is $358,568, he said.
Wheeler said the relocated water and power lines also will serve the area around the Whirlpool site, including other potential industrial sites.
Finance Manager Ken Webb said the bond issues are less than what was budgeted for and apply to several projects, not just Whirlpool. The Cleveland City Council must approve the bond issue.
Earlier this month Whirlpool announced its intention to build a 1-million-square-foot plant to build premium cooking appliances here, a $120 million investment. The new facility eventually will replace the existing plant, where cook stoves have been made for 100 years.
Contact Randall Higgins at rhiggins@timesfreepress.com or 423-314-1029.-