State, county and local governments are trying to curb spending and even making deep cuts that legislators not so long ago might have thought inconceivable.

But with the recently passed $787 billion federal stimulus package, states like North Carolina, which will receive about $6.1 billion in stimulus money, have already begun applying for funds for transportation, infrastructure and other projects.

Western Wake towns have their own lists of projects they hope to see funded. Here’s a town-by-town guide.

CARY
• Upgrade and expand residual and chemical feed facilities at the Cary-Apex Water Treatment Facility. Estimated cost: $13 million. The first of four projects for which Cary is seeking stimulus funds through the state Department of Environmental and Natural Resources, these upgrades are being considered a high priority because they’re necessary to maintain water quality.

• Automatic meter reading and data collection. Estimated cost: $16 million. Cary would like to install a fixed-network automated reading system that electronically provides multiple meter readings per day per meter. The town hopes the system will improve customer service and water conservation and aid in the detection of leaks, thefts and tampering.

• Western Wake Regional Wastewater Reclamation Facility. Estimated cost: $296 million. The total cost of this facility, which would also serve residents of Apex, Holly Springs, Morrisville and Wake County, will be divided among those users. The estimated cost does not reflect the price tag that would be associated with acquiring land on which to build the facility.

• Batchelor Branch sewer interceptor. Estimated cost: $1.95 million. Installation of this gravity-driven sewer line would allow Cary to eliminate two effluent pump stations located within the Jordan Lake watershed.


MORRISVILLE
• New fire station. Estimated cost: $3 million. Construction of a new fire station, which would replace the existing Station 1 on Morrisville-Carpenter Road, is the sole capital project for which the town is seek stimulus dollars. Funding for the project, if approved, would come from grants issued by the U.S. Department of Justice.

• Additional police officers. Estimated cost: Unknown. Funding of an additional five police officers would include only money for their salaries and benefits. The money would come from $2 billion appropriated to the Dept. of Justice’s Office of Homeland Security for its Community Oriented Policing Services program.

• Additional firefighters. Estimated cost: Unknown. As with its appeal to the federal government for funds for additional police officers, Town Manager John Whitson said Morrisville had applied to the Office of Homeland Security for money to hire nine firefighters. Assuming salaries and benefits were fully-funded with stimulus dollars, Whitson said Morrisville would still need to spend between $10,000 and $25,000 on equipment for those workers.


APEX
• Western Wake Regional Wastewater Reclamation Facility. Estimated cost: $296 million. The Town of Apex has not yet determined how much money it might seek from stimulus funds to help pay for its share of the project.

• Apex Peakway. Estimated cost: $4.6 million. Because most road projects are funded through the state Department of Transportation, it’s unclear how or if this project would qualify for stimulus funds. But if it does qualify, Apex would like to use those dollars to complete a loop road around the town’s central business district.


FUQUAY-VARINA
• Extension of N.E. Judd Parkway. Estimated cost: $5-6 million. It’s uncertain whether this project would meet requirements for receiving stimulus aid. But if it does, construction of this 1.5-mile extension of Fuquay-Varina’s inner loop around the town’s main business district could provide much-needed relief for motorists traveling to and from what once was known as the unincorporated community of Varina.

• Upgrade sewer force main. Estimated cost: $450,000. Replacement of an existing sewer force main with a larger main would allow the town to pump more effluent to a wastewater treatment facility Fuquay-Varina built with Harnett County. The move would take pressure off of the town’s Terrible Creek wastewater treatment facility.

• Upgrade Terrible Creek Wastewater Treatment Facility. Estimated cost: $2.9 million. Should the town succeed in redirecting effluent to the wastewater treatment facility in Harnett County, it would extend the life of the Terrible Creek facility. A series of four mini-projects would improve Fuquay-Varina’s ability to remove grit and thicken sludge at the Terrible Creek sewer plant.

• Extend water line on Sunset Lake Road to Bass Lake Road. Estimated cost: $750,000. Completion of this project would not only aid in the transmission of water, but would help close a portion of a water line that loops around a large portion of Fuquay-Varina. The town hopes the additional availability of water to the north-central part of town will help promote development in that area.

• Relocate portion of water line on Sunset Lake Road. Estimated cost: $150,000. The state Department of Transportation has plans to replace an existing bridge along Sunset Lake Road. The town must relocate a portion of the water line near the bridge in order for the DOT project to move forward.

• Extend water line along Wilbon Road. Estimated cost: $420,000. Completion of this project would complete a loop of connecting water lines in the northern and western parts of town. The extension of this water line was originally to be paid for by a developer that sought to build about 200 single-family homes in the area. That project faltered due to economic hardship, but the town hopes stimulus money might help lighten the developer’s financial burden.


HOLLY SPRINGS
• Extension of Stephens Grove Boulevard. Estimated cost: $1.7 million. A proposed connector road between Piney Grove-Wilbon Road and Ralph Stephens Road, the town hopes this project would provide relief for southbound traffic on Avent Ferry Road at the intersection with the N.C. 55 Bypass.

• Sidewalk extension. Estimated cost: $880,000. An 8-foot concrete sidewalk along Bass Lake Road would extend an existing sidewalk from the Holly Springs Crossing shopping center to the Bass Lake Retreat Center. Construction is scheduled to begin this summer, pending funding.

• Utley Creek Effluent Pump Station and force main to western Wake facilities. Estimated cost: $14 million. The construction of a new pump station and installation of additional force main are necessary steps toward compliance with a request from the state Department of Environmental and Natural Resources to relocate discharge from the Utley Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant into the Cape Fear River.

• Friendship Industrial Site sewer extension. Estimated cost: $1.5 million. Stimulus dollars would help Holly Springs extend sewer lines to a 130-acre site on which the town hopes to see built a small business park.

• Inflow and infiltration rehabilitation. Estimated cost: $750,000. This project consists of rehabilitating manholes, segments of sewer pipes and sewer lift stations. About 10 percent of the total cost would be used for engineering tasks, including inspections and data analysis, while the remainder would fund construction costs.

• Rex Road watermain loop. Estimated cost: $1.8 million. A proposed extension of watermain along Cass Holt Road and Buckhorn Duncan Road would connect an existing watermain at Avent Ferry Road to one on Buckhorn Duncan Road. A water line would also be extended northwest along Rex Road to a proposed soccer complex.

• Friendship Industrial Site water service. Estimated cost: $1.6 million. As with the extension of sewer service, this project would seek to provide an extension of water lines to a certified industrial development site, which is already being actively marketed to industries.