NORWICH – Chenango County supervisors are moving forward on a proposal to shell out $50,000 to explore the prospect of extending water and wastewater systems on the Route 12 corridor north of the City of Norwich.

County funds will fulfill a matching requirement of a $50,000 New York State Government Efficiency Grant recently awarded to the county.

The Chenango County Planning Department has proposed using the total $100,000 to examine possible upgrades to the water and sewage infrastructure in the northern portion of the Town of Norwich, as well as the City of Norwich and the Town of North Norwich. The allocation would also provide for studies to upgrade the city’s wastewater treatment plant to make it more usable for extensions outside city limits.

Proponents point out that improvements to the water systems may bolster housing and manufacturing in the area, creating a boon for the entire county as efforts to upgrade water and sewage would shore up private development near critical industrial sites, including the empty industrial lot on State Route 320, once home to Chobani corporate offices.

The Chenango County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution committing that $50,000 be taken from the county’s revolving loan fund that typically goes to public and private entities to support economic development projects.