County, city growth is also underground

Janet Imrick

Randolph Hub 

ASHEBORO — Amid all the economic growth across Randolph County, there’s also significant growth underground. Workers with Garney Construction have begun laying pipe for the Wolfspeed water line to the CAM site in Chatham County.

Asheboro Water Resources Director Michael Rhoney said he has discussions with county staff almost every day about Wolfspeed. “I’m working directly with their public works department, Paxton [Arthurs] and Chris Hildreth,” he said, in reference to the county engineer and director of public utilities and facilities.

They divided the line into four sections but began with what they named Section 4, the part closest to the CAM site. Rhoney said that was the easiest. “I drove through yesterday, and there is some pipe in the ground now. It’s exciting,” he said.

In March or April, they expect to begin work on Section 3, which will be one of most difficult areas because it crosses the Deep River. It requires additional permits from both the NC Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) and the Army Corps of Engineers.

“It’s not delayed, just slow,” Rhoney said. He said it is still on track to be finished in January of next year.

Garney is the design-build team. They work with three engineers — Wooten Company, LKC, and Withers Avenue — given the scale of the project and the collaboration between the city and the county.

When Wolfspeed selected Chatham County in 2022 for a new silicon chip factory, Randolph County saw an opportunity to review its own water needs in the northeast. On Aug. 27, the county proposed to increase the size of the pipe along the NC 49 corridor from 20 inches to 24 inches.

“The current plan for the water line is to use the county’s, Asheboro’s and Ramseur’s capacity to serve the water line,” Arthurs said. “We are looking to upsize a section of water line in Ramseur and have added a supply connection for Ramseur as well as a few taps for future growth areas.”

That discussion is ongoing. The county said it would pay for the upsize if Asheboro agrees.

North Carolina provided $55 million through the Department of Commerce to serve Wolfspeed, though Rhoney said they are closely watching the budget. “We expect inflation and utility construction, but not like it has been. It’s incredible what the inflation has been,” he said.

Arthurs said Wolfspeed’s factory is not supposed to drain back into the county watersheds, so they do not expect an issue with runoff, stormwater or chemical discharges.

Asheboro water: PTWRA project? Lawsuit? 

While Wolfspeed is in progress, the PTRWA to Asheboro water line has not begun construction. Arthurs hopes that will move forward in the coming months. “There are still several unknowns with easements and permitting, but we hope to be able to put the project out for bid by early summer,” he said.

The city and county began planning the water line even before Asheboro began talks about joining the Piedmont Triad Regional Water Authority.

The line would allow Randolph County to sell some of its water from Randleman Lake to Asheboro. Rhoney said that the partnership would be a mutually beneficial one.

“In Asheboro, we appreciate having an emergency source of water if something happened to our plant or our system,” he said. “The county has their skin in this game, because they have all the water they’re paying for from PTRWA, and they’re not using it. That’s their opportunity to bring their water and have a customer.”

In July, PTRWA Director Greg Flory told the city council that Randleman Lake contains two chemicals of concern: 1,4 Dioxane and PFA. Federal regulators believe 1,4 Dioxane leached into the lake from the now-closed Seaboard Chemical Corporation in Jamestown.

1,4 Dioxane, which the EPA has labeled a “likely carcinogen,” is the driver behind a lawsuit Asheboro filed against NCDEQ over whether it must remove the compound before it flows into their communities. A judge ruled in Asheboro’s favor. NCDEG has appealed, with several downstream municipalities calling for treatment to be required upstream.

Rhoney said Randleman Lake water uses chloramines for their primary disinfection, the same treatment method used by Asheboro for its current water.

Lake Reese remains Asheboro’s primary water source. “Lake Lucas is almost primary, but right now we’ve got the intake that isn’t working like it should,” Rhoney said. Fixing the intake structure could cost another $4 million-$5 million.

Arthurs said the project is expected to cost $9.38 million, to be paid out of ARPA funds.

In July, the City Council voted on a memorandum of understanding to consider joining. A study is under way before Asheboro decides whether to join.