By Ryan Storz

April is now the earliest residents in Leasburg can anticipate the water project getting underway.
Nicky Phillips addressed the trustees on Tuesday night saying that Cochran Engineering is still not finished with the planning and designing and that the project cannot be started until 120 days after the paperwork is completed.
Phillips said that the engineering report is done and that the planning and designing is “80 percent finished,” according to an update she received from Chris Boone.
If the paperwork is completed sometime this month, Leasburg could conceivably begin drilling when the 120 days pass in January.
But Jared Boast, who works as a contractor for Leasburg’s infrastructure issues, advised that the board put the project off until spring.
Boast said that it would not be a problem to drill in the winter, but that it would be unnecessary to take any chances on a $400,000 project.
The board expressed their frustration at how slow-moving the process is. No bid packets or anything else pertaining to the project can be submitted until everything is finalized.
Chris Kaiser remarked that Cochran is likely bogged down with projects. Trustees would like all the plans on Cochran’s end to be completed by the next meeting, which is on Sept. 15.
Boone has been invited to the meeting to, hopefully, inform the board what the next steps are, if the paperwork is finished.
Leasburg also needs a loan for one of the wells and that its financial information is currently under review. Phillips said that the minimum loan is $100,000, but Leasburg cannot afford to take on such a big loan.
Phillips said that they need a document which reads the village of Leasburg cannot  get a loan. Repeated phone calls and e-mails both from Phillips and Boone have gone unreturned.