State awards grant for Walhalla project

Additional residents of a low-to-moderate income Walhalla neighborhood will benefit from a project that’ll replace aging water lines and give them greater flow when they switch on the faucets. Walhalla has been approved for a grant of $387,747 for phase II of the Chicopee Mill Village water upgrade. According to an announcement by the state Department of Commerce, Walhalla is one of 24 city and county governments sharing in nearly $10 million of Community Development Block money that’ll benefit more than 11,800 residents. The grant for Walhalla is one of nine targeted in communities to improve water pressure, quality and fire protection, as well as to ensure a safe source of drinking water for families. In answer to a question this week by Walhalla Councilman Josh Holliday, Utilities Superintendent Scott Parris said all of the Chicopee grant money is reserved for that neighborhood. None of it, Parris said, may be diverted to the Streetscape project downtown.