News

City, Laurel Park poised to OK water merger on Friday

By Lightning Reports, Published: March 3, 2021

Elected leaders of Laurel Park and Hendersonville will hold a joint meeting at 3 p.m. Friday to discuss the conveyance of the Laurel Park water system to the city of Hendersonville and potentially culminate years of talk about a water system merger by adopting resolutions authorizing the change. The city says the merger would mean lower water bills for Laurel Park customers.

Throughout the years, the City of Hendersonville and Town of Laurel Park have enjoyed a great professional relationship that prioritizes citizens’ quality of life and provides quality services, the city of Hendersonville said in a news release. In line with those goals, the municipalities began discussing a potential merger of the water systems that would benefit all customers and the utility system. A resolution approving the merger will be considered by both bodies on Friday.

As a result of merging the systems, existing Laurel Park water customers should expect to pay approximately $120 less per year once they are absorbed into Hendersonville’s water system. The city of Hendersonville has proposed committing more than $1 million worth of improvements to the Laurel Park section of the system within the first 24 months of the transfer. The merger of the two water systems will also provide increased and more reliable water pressure to specific areas of the Hendersonville water system, the city said.

If the two boards approve, the merger of the two systems is expected to begin this spring.

Visit www.hendersonvillenc.gov or www.laurelpark.org for more information on how to view the March 5 Special Called Meeting.

The electronic meeting will take place via Zoom and will include both respective governing bodies. The public is invited to watch and listen to the meeting using the Zoom information posted on the Town of Laurel Park and City of Hendersonville websites.