Local leaders want to make sure any home that can hook up to a sewer line is connected.
Members of the Thomson City Council and the McDuffie County Commission approved an ordinance Tuesday night that requires Thomson and McDuffie residents to hook up to new sewer lines within a year of the lines becoming active.
Part of the reason for the ordinance is the planned sewer expansion project along Cobbham Road and in the Belle Meade area.
Officials have tapped into USDA loan dollars to help pay for the work, said Commission Chairman Charlie Newton. To help pay those loans back, officials need to ensure all 261 potential customers in the area connect to the system.
"I don't like telling anyone they have to do anything, but there's a significant public health issue at Belle Meade and other areas that need to be fixed," said Mr. Newton.
Mr. Newton said he hopes work can begin on the Belle Meade project by the end of the year and be completed by the end of 2006.
