Lander Blue Ridge Apartments Infrastructure

Project Description:

The city of Lander received $460,000 in CDBG Housing Infrastructure funds to impr ove an existing wate r and sewer line. The project assisted in addressing a major housing shortage in Lander. An independent housing needs assessment was prepared by Kirkham and Associates which demonstrated the extreme shortage of housing in Lander. The primary reasons for this is the lack of available land large enough for developing additional housing, unava ilability of infrastructure, and incompatible zoning. The population of Lander has grown steadily, over the past five years. Between 2000 and 2010, the population has increased by almost 9 percent, or 620 people. Ov er the past two ye ars, there have been only 10 building permits issued and none were for multifamily development. Over the next five year s, data in the market study shows that Lander will grow by at least 3.7 percent.

Background: The city of Lander previously had a two inch force main sewer line on the west side of East Main Street, and a lift statio n at the bottom of the hill which se rves the area. The size of the existing force main is inadequate for the future de mand south of Sunflower Street and cannot handle the demand of the proposed 40 additional residential units. Also, there is an industrial park located in the area that could not expand because of the line.

This project upgraded the existing force main line from a two inch line to an eight inch line, and a gravity line was installed for the Blue Ridge Apartments, which sits approximately half way down the hill, to the pump station north of Sunflower Street. Sewer improvements were also made on site. Approximately 800 feet of sewer line was inst alled on site and another 1,600 feet was installed to construct the grav ity line between Blue Ridge and the lift station. 2,600 Ft of sewer line was needed to upgrade the existi ng main line from a two-inch to an eight inch line. Improvements will be made to the pumps in the lift station, which currently lack the capacity to serve the 40 proposed units. Two new pumps will be installed and the pump house refurbished. The pumps not only meet the needs of the housing site, bu t also allow for expansio n of the entire area southeast of Lander. As of September 2013, this project had been successfully completed and closed out.

Project Facts:
CDBG Award: 460,000
Local Contribution: $6,262,372
Date of Award: May 24, 2012

For more information about this project, contact the Wyoming Business Council