OBX Beach Living - Sarah Spencer

The county has purchased Carolina Water Service’s system and has plans to purchase an additional system that services Pine Island in mid-August. This means that the county is the sole provider of treated water in Corolla including the communities of Corolla Light, Monteray Shores and The Currituck Club. There have been complaints for years about the quality of the water in those particular communities. CWS officials have said they've done all they could to produce quality water and meet state standards. CWS wanted to sell sooner, but Currituck's offer was $1.5 million less than the value of the system, according to online documents filed with the utilities commission. However, CWS agreed to the sale in February. The state approved the sale of both systems after a lengthy review.

Pine Island residents and Corolla Light management publicly supported the sale, but other communities weren’t as pleased. Some Corolla citizens were concerned about the assessment being imposed on them for the purchase of the system. For the first five years, customers in Corolla Light, Monteray Shores and Currituck Club will be assessed a $75 a month for 5 years.

Additionally, under county rates, the average residential water bill will rise to $48 monthly based on 4,000 gallons consumed, a $21 a month increase, according to the notice.

This all comes on the heels of a recent Boil Water Advisory in July in Buck Island, Corolla Light, Monteray Shores. The program assistant with Currituck Emergency Management, said her understanding was that Carolina Water Services, encountered some sort of a plant failure.

Currently, the County’s reverse osmosis plant services 2000 customers and can handle another 3000. The plant is located on the westside of Rt. 12, just south of TimBuck II. It came online in 2005 at a cost of $13 million. 

For more information, go to www.co.currituck.nc.us , Departments, Water.