LOOGOOTEE, Ind. (AP) — In a session Monday, Mar. 30, the Loogootee City Council and Board of Works members charted an ambitious course for the city’s future, taking on aging water infrastructure, a looming lead service line deadline, and the pressures of continued development. The meeting, which stretched nearly an hour, saw engineering consultants, city officials, and council members weighing critical decisions that could shape Loogootee for decades.

The main focus was a sweeping Preliminary Engineering Report (PER), dated March 2026, prepared by Midwest Engineering, outlining nearly $18.3 million in vital upgrades to the city’s water system. The proposal includes replacing miles of deteriorating water mains, modernizing the treatment plant, addressing more than 1,200 “unknown” lead service lines, and constructing a new utility building — all in pursuit of state and federal compliance and a safer, more robust utility for Loogootee’s growing population.

“We started meeting kind of the fall last year, monthly, with all the projects that you guys have going on. Of course, [we] have been very successful with community crossings. Successful again here with this last call. So it kind of spurred from coordinating those projects a little bit better, coordinating the water projects that we currently have under construction, which is your booster stations and your elevated water storage tanks, and then coordinating your wastewater projects which are forthcoming, and then, all of a sudden, now potentially more water projects,” an engineering consultant told the council, summarizing the mounting urgency.

Lead Service Line Compliance: “A Critical Deadline”

A major driver is new federal requirements for municipalities to inventory and replace lead service lines. Loogootee faces about 1,271 service lines with unknown material — a potential compliance nightmare. The city must identify or replace these by November 2027 or risk costly penalties.

“With current lead service line inventory requirements, if it’s an unknown, you have to have a replacement program for it. So you can probably do the math — 1,271 unknowns. If we had to replace those, that would be a very expensive project,” the consultant said.

The state’s revolving fund (SRF) has made more than $100 million in grant money available to communities prioritizing lead line removal. “We have in front of you…trying to take advantage of some of that lead service line money that’s available. It would all be potentially grant, potentially grant,” the consultant emphasized, underscoring the financial stakes.

Loogootee’s approach is to use hydro-excavation on each unknown line — an expensive but definitive method. “If we’re going to do it, we want to know for sure it’s lead, right? We don’t want to just check a box. So you guys are trying to do the right thing here. In my opinion, it’s a heck of a lot more expensive, but it’s…the right way to approach it. And regardless, we don’t have a choice. I mean, it has…we have a deadline that we have to meet.”

Old Pipes, New Problems

The city’s water infrastructure is a patchwork of decades-old cast iron and ductile iron pipes, some installed in the early 1980s without modern corrosion protection. Failures have become more frequent, especially in a 14-inch transmission main that runs from the well field to the plant.

“Some 30 years ago, that main was not wrapped. So nowadays, what we do is we’ll wrap ductile iron with a poly wrap that prevents hydrate soils from causing that ductile iron to corrode. It was not wrapped in 1982, 1983 so working with Bo and Daniel, there are a lot of points in that 14-inch transmission main from wellfield to the plant that they’ve had failures on. So it’s really poor shape,” the consultant reported.

Mayor Brian T. Ader echoed the concern: “We’re starting to see where it’s affecting us. So this is, it’s not going to get any better. So that’s why we’re going down this route, trying to figure out what we can do, because to get it from the well field to the plant and then in town, it’s going to take a lot of work. That’s a lot of 14-inch line. We’re talking few miles of line there.”

The proposed solution: replace the 14-inch main with a more common and cost-effective 16-inch pipe. “One of our proposed improvements is replacing that 14 inch line [with] a 16 inch line. 16 inch is just more readily available. And it’s actually cheaper to do 16 inch than it is 14 inch,” the engineer explained.

Water Plant Upgrades and Distribution System Overhaul

The water treatment plant — last significantly updated in the early 2000s — also needs attention. The plan calls for a new aerator unit, replacement of aging valves and meters, and the addition of a new high-service pump to increase plant flexibility and capacity.

“Your last improvement project out there was a two or three time period. The issue that we see out there, and talking with Bo and Daniel, is the air later unit. So the big, tall, vertical element out there that is in need of repainting and some rehab work. The problem is that if we take that down, we have an issue. So…we’re proposing to put a new 1000 gallon per minute air later on [an adjacent concrete pad]. And then once that new air later would be up and running, we would take the old one down,” the consultant said.

In the distribution system, the city aims to replace about two and a half miles of aging, undersized pipes, targeting areas with persistent failures and those likely to contain lead or galvanized lines. The city already secured needed easements for these replacements in 2024, a critical step for SRF grant eligibility.

Price Tag and Funding: “It Takes Money to Keep It Up and Going”

The total estimated cost of the proposed work is $18.31 million, with $15.7 million allocated for construction and $2.6 million for engineering, legal, and documentation work (including the lead line inventory).

“We decided to throw everything in one basket, just to cover it, because once it’s out there, you can’t put something in, yeah, take away. Can’t put anything into it. So we’re just trying to cover all the bases here for the city, as far as it’s not a want, it’s actual needs,” said a council member, emphasizing the necessity of the projects.

Funding will hinge on the city’s share of limited SRF grant money, with decisions expected this summer. “There’s gonna be a lot of applicants. So to the mayor’s point, I think we approach this as this is the basket of needs that we see for the city. I think this is a really good opportunity to get some grant money. I don’t think you’re going to get all grant money. So to the mayor’s point earlier, I think hopefully this summer, June, July, time period is when we’re going to find out…how you’re going to score,” said the consultant.

If the city does not secure enough grant funding, rate increases could be significant. “My gut feeling would be, it’s probably gonna, I bet it will more than double with what we have proposed on the table tonight, assuming no grant,” the engineer warned. Still, current rates are average for Indiana, officials noted.

Growth and Demographic Shifts

Despite state and federal projections of declining population, Loogootee has seen modest growth, with new subdivisions and development activity increasing demand on the city’s water system.

“We’ve had growth to the mayor’s point. You know, we’ve got country court subdivision. You’ve got other developments that have happened too. So I think that’s a really good sign for the city is you are getting more customers. There are a lot of communities in southern [Indiana] that don’t have that dynamic. So I think there’s some good things you have going for you. That is one of them,” the consultant said.

Mayor Ader added: “I think you’re going to see that we’re going to jump that up quite a bit here with what we have going on now. You’ve already seen it last five years.”

Council Actions: Approvals and Next Steps

The council unanimously approved resolutions authorizing the mayor to apply for SRF funding and to formally adopt the PER, with further public hearings planned for April. Officials stressed that application submission does not commit the city to all proposed projects, but preserves flexibility as funding details emerge.

“You’re not getting locked into anything with making this now. You can take stuff in or out of the projects, different ones. So…it just gives us the loss of work to take a look or move forward to the next step before we make any final decisions,” a council member clarified.

Other Actions: Ordinances, Event Applications, and Fiscal Oversight

Beyond water, the council amended an ordinance to simplify the process for city property use applications, striking deadlines and penalty language to provide more flexibility.

“We’re just taking out the 45 days portion. Well, no, we’re actually striking quite a bit of language out…that would pertain to deadlines and doubling of application fees and some of that. So it is technically more than just the 45 days coming out of it,” a council member explained.

The council also deferred action on special event applications, including a request for the 2026 Pride Fest, citing the need for proper forms and legal review. All parties’ attorneys will be consulted, and applications will be considered in order of receipt at the next meeting.

Additionally, the city discussed hiring Baker Tilly to handle annual disclosure reports for recent sewer bonds, seeking cost estimates before approval. Officials cited the complexity of reporting requirements and the need for expert assistance.

Looking Ahead

The council’s actions mark a pivotal moment for Loogootee as it balances urgent infrastructure needs, strict federal timelines, and the promise of community growth. As one official put it: “Everybody wants water to come in, they want to go out.”

Decisions made in the coming months — and the city’s success in securing grant funding — will determine not only how those needs are met, but also the financial future of every resident and business in Loogootee.