http://www.thenewsdispatch.com/articles/20.../13/news/n1.txt

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City water project criticized

Construction of a water main connecting Michigan City's water supply to New Buffalo Township started four weeks ago and is expected to be completed by the end of January, said Randy Russell, Michigan City Water Works director, on Friday.

The township is paying about $200,000 to install 16-inch pipes from Shady Oaks Mobile Home Park east to the Michigan state line. Once the Indiana portion is completed by H&G Underground of LaPorte, the project will be finished by Michigan contractors.

By March, the township should be able to receive about 2 million gallons of water a day from Michigan City.

But not everyone is happy about the project. Tim Bennett, owner of Hidden Inn, 10303 U.S.12, is so upset about the construction's impact his property that he called Mayor Chuck Oberlie's office and Russell. On Friday he called The News-Dispatch to express his “extreme displeasure.”

“This is the stupidest thing since Sputnik,” Bennett sputtered, pointing to the swath of sandy soil that once was grass at the front of his property. He pointed to a section of the Hidden Inn's asphalt driveway that was torn up by a backhoe. Bennett said he has consulted companies about repairing the driveway and estimates range from $2,500 to $6,000.

“Why should I pay for New Buffalo's water?” Bennett said. “Nobody else seems to think it's a problem, but if it can happen to me, it can happen to anyone.”

Contacted about Bennett's concerns, Russell said, “I'm sorry he's upset but it will get cleaned up.”

Russell said the construction contract calls for site restoration, including driveway blacktop and grass seeding, but much of the work will not be done until spring.

“Nobody has to pay for anything, other than the cost of hooking up to the water main if they want to,” Russell said.

Syed Rizvi, owner of the Mobil station east of the Hidden Inn, said he's worried about how the water project is affecting his business.

“People are not turning in,” Rizvi said. “I'm already feeling the crunch.” He said he has not calculated the exact cost of reduced sales.

Rizvi feels he had been “kept in the dark” about the project and the cost of tapping into the water main. He did say he received Russell's business card.

Russell said he personally visited each of the property owners along the affected stretch of U.S. 12 before construction started, but some people were not available.

“I like to do that (visit) because I can answer questions and show them better than I could in a letter,” Russell said.

Township officials contracted with Michigan City to supply its water after feuding for more than a year with the city of New Buffalo over the amount of water it receives. The township has an agreement with New Buffalo to find a new water source by March 1.

Contact reporter Laurie Wink at lwink@thenewsdispatch.com