Abbeville to receive $2.5M to guard against disaster

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The city of Abbeville will receive $2.5 million in federal Commerce Department money to fund an upgrade of critical infrastructure to serve its Long Cane Creek wastewater treatment facility.

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross announced that the department’s Economic Development Administration is awarding $3.7 million in grants to the state of South Carolina to make critical infrastructure upgrades needed to help the state respond to recent natural disasters.

 The upgrades will allow the Abbeville facility to better respond to high-water events, such as those that occurred during Hurricane Irma, according to a news release. It will also maintain reliable and consistent services to current industrial and commercial customers.

“After South Carolina was devastated by Hurricanes Irma and Florence, I look forward to helping the state build greater resilience for extreme weather in the future, particularly in Abbeville where the grant will serve a Tax Cuts and Jobs Act designated Opportunity Zone,” Ross said in the release.

This project was made possible by regional planning efforts led by the Upper Savannah Council of Governments, the release said. EDA funds the Upper Savannah Council of Governments to bring together the public and private sectors to create an economic development roadmap to strengthen the regional economy, support private capital investment and create jobs.

The grants also include $1.2 million for Winthrop University to fund electrical upgrades to support disaster resiliency efforts being undertaken at the university.