DATE: Wednesday, September 3, 1997          TAG: 9709030449

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY KATRICE FRANKLIN, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: SUFFOLK                           LENGTH:   84 lines

DEAL MEANS SUFFOLK IS NOW OPEN FOR BUSINESS

Until last week, if a major manufacturer had said yes to Suffolk, the city might have had to say wait.

``We would've been near our limit'' on current resources for water, said Public Utilities Director Al Moor.

Big companies don't take kindly to waiting, which could turn yes to no.

With a partnership formed last week with Portsmouth, Suffolk got two precious commodities: water and time. It can now say yes.

The city can buy about 2 million more gallons of water each day from its neighbor - drawing from two large reservoirs, instead of one, to serve its sprawling 430-square miles.

And it can focus on its transformation from the rural outpost of Hampton Roads to a more urban city and on attracting business to support it.

``Overall, we now have the opportunity to evaluate our water system,'' Moor said.

``We were at the point where we needed to start moving on some decisions. But the urgency is lessened, and we'll have a better plan . . . '' for the future, he said.

The agreement, giving Suffolk enough water for the next 10 years, also will provide municipal water for residents now served by the city's seven community wells.

``Now we have the opportunity to see how we can best serve the Northeast and the rest of the city,'' said Moor. ``Our 1990 master water plan said we would need 9 million gallons of water a day by the year 2010. This provides us with that.''

Suffolk draws about 3.5 million gallons of water a day from one of its own reservoirs. It will use more than 2 million gallons from Portsmouth, and an additional 3.8 million can be pumped from Suffolk's groundwater resources.

Without the union, city officials said, they would have had to tap the groundwater within months. That would have meant building a plant to treat the water before shipping it throughout the city.

``Now we just have to buy mains to transport water,'' Moor said.

The city can also move more slowly and carefully with a Newport News consultant hired to help it decide how to best use the groundwater.

The Portsmouth and Suffolk city councils met in a joint meeting to approve the agreement allowing Suffolk to buy the additional water, plus the 500,000 gallons it already gets from Portsmouth.

Beginning Dec. 31, Suffolk can receive up to 1.82 million gallons of water per day until the year 1999. From 1999 to 2002, the city can use up to 2.32 gallons and after 2002, up to 2.54 million.

The water will come from a Portsmouth water treatment plant in downtown Suffolk.

Officials and council members from both cities tout the agreement as a new beginning. Two cities, said Portsmouth Mayor James W. Holley III and Suffolk Council member Curtis R. Milteer, can work together to achieve more than any one can alone.

Both parties spoke eagerly about working together on future projects that some say include building a regional recreational facility to serve residents near the Portsmouth, Chesapeake and Suffolk border. There is also talk of improving the Suffolk Golf Course that is owned by Portsmouth.

Besides the water bought from Portsmouth, the city has for years been draining from the rural Chuckatuck reservoir to serve its 14,000 plus customers.

Even though 20 percent of Suffolk is made up of water, many of the city's reservoirs are owned by other South Hampton Roads cities. Norfolk owns three water sources in the western end of the city, and Portsmouth owns four.

With the new agreement, the Portsmouth facility can be used to service downtown Suffolk and the southern end of the city, and water from Chuckatuck will flow to the northern end, Moor said.

Initially, the Chuckatuck reservoir will pump about 2 million gallons of water each day to the northern end of the city instead of the 3.5 million gallons that it currently sends out.

Moor said the extra water will eventually be used to service Suffolk's expanding northern end, where huge developments like Harbour View, with thousands of homes and land for a number of large businesses, are popping up.

The city can also use some of Chuckatuck's water people who are currently being using private wells. Many of the wells are old and have failing pipes, and they are a health concern.

``Before, we were pushing water from Chuckatuck all through the city, and we were pumping it at a greater pressure,'' Moor said. ``With water coming from downtown to serve the southern end of the city, we're more flexible on any future expansions.'' KEYWORDS: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT MUNICIPAL COOPERATION

WATER SUPPLY

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