Roy McCoy roy@robconews.com Robertson County News HEARNE — After more than two years of planning, the City of Hearne has broken ground on a $500,000 rehabilitation project aimed at improving the reliability and resiliency of the San Antonio Water Plant. City officials, community leaders and project partners gathered Oct. 9 for a groundbreaking ceremony marking the beginning of construction at the plant, located at 1108 S. San Antonio St. The project is being funded through a $500,000 Regional Mitigation Program grant awarded to Hearne by the Texas General Land Office in May 2024. The grant is part of the Community Development Block Grant Mitigation program. The GLO officially lists the project as the San Antonio Water Plant Rehabilitation. Work will focus on modernizing the existing facility rather than constructing an entirely new water plant. Planned improvements include rehabilitation of the plant’s storage and pump buildings, painting, window replacement and HVAC work. Crews will also install pumps and chlorine gas equipment and replace portions of the plant’s piping, valves and chlorination equipment. Additional site improvements include new chain-link fence fabric, a concrete access driveway, asphalt paving and construction of a grass drainage swale. Old concrete pads and other outdated equipment are also scheduled for removal. GrantWorks and DCS Engineering helped the city move the project through the grant, engineering and procurement processes. B-5 Construction has been selected to perform the construction work. The project was advertised for bids earlier this year under CDBG-MIT Contract No. 24-065-074-E685. Bid documents describe the work as rehabilitation of the plant’s pumps, chemical storage areas, electrical components and buildings housing the pumping and chemical systems. Plans also call for significant improvements to the plant’s chlorination system. Specifications include three new chlorinators, chlorine leak detection equipment, new piping and a two-compartment fiberglass structure for chlorine equipment. The San Antonio Water Plant project was one of several infrastructure projects approved through the GLO’s Regional Mitigation Program in 2024. Hearne’s $500,000 award was announced alongside another $500,000 grant for Robertson County street improvements. The Hearne City Council also approved committing up to $120,000 in additional local funding in September to help cover project costs not paid for by the grant. The improvements are intended to strengthen Hearne’s water infrastructure, improve system reliability and help the city meet future water needs as the community continues to develop. Construction is expected to continue through Aug. 31, 2027.