Village trustees voted 4 to 0 on June 22 to pursue a $14.4 million water system project with a projected 2028 construction start, even as the $10.8 million state backed wastewater plant upgrade passes the 60 percent mark and NY Forward streetscape bids come in downtown.
MORAVIA, N.Y. The most consequential vote in this Cayuga County village this summer did not happen at a ribbon cutting. It happened at 7 p.m. on June 22 inside the village hall at 22 Central Street, when four trustees agreed, without a dissenting voice, to chase a water system overhaul now scoped at $14.4 million.
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That figure comes straight from the village board’s own meeting minutes. Engineers Jennifer Vaughn and Jason Ebbs of LaBella Associates presented the findings of a water system evaluation that night, and the numbers they laid out were blunt. Construction costs were estimated at $6.2 million. A 35 percent construction contingency added $2.2 million. Associated costs added another $1.5 million, bringing the base project to $10 million. An amended scope that folds in additional water main replacements pushed the total to $14.4 million. The projected start date: 2028.
A motion by Trustee Patrick Mott, seconded by Trustee Josh Marnell, carried 4-0 to approve moving forward with the amended $14.4 million project scope. For a village of 1,224 people at the 2020 census, that works out to roughly $11,765 per resident, a number that explains why the board’s next moves are all about grant applications rather than shovels.
The LaBella evaluation identified the problems in plain terms. According to the June 22 minutes, the village’s existing major challenges include “an aging distribution system, well # 3 and updating the disinfection system for all wells.” The recommended fix starts with a phased water main replacement program, beginning with the main that runs from Aurora Street to the village’s holding tank on Skinner Hill. Getting well No. 3 tested and back online is also on the list, because a working third well gives Moravia redundancy it currently does not have in water production.
The village is not waiting until 2028 to spend on its wells. At the June 8 meeting, trustees approved a $46,250 purchase order to Layne Christensen Co. for redevelopment of well No. 1, a $2,500 order to EMA of NY Inc. for well No. 3 pump startup services, and two orders of $11,356.90 each, also to EMA of NY, to install AC drive units at wells No. 1 and No. 2. Add a $1,358.82 Cummins repair to the well house generator and the board committed more than $72,000 to well work in a single evening.
Paying for the big project is the harder question. The minutes state that LaBella will help the village apply through the Water Infrastructure Improvement Act, the Community Development Block Grant program, and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. Before any of that money moves, the village has to clear the State Environmental Quality Review process, and that clock is now running.
On June 22 the board adopted Resolution No. 10 of 2026, declaring its intent to serve as lead agency for what the document titles the Village of Moravia Water System Improvements Project. The resolution text, certified by Village Clerk Madison Hares-Ryan, states the board’s plan “to replace existing water main, valves, hydrant assemblies, water service connections, curb box, laterals, and restoration on Aurora Street from WWTP to Church St.” It classifies the work as an Unlisted action under SEQR, commissions LaBella to prepare Part 1 of the Short Environmental Assessment Form, and opens a 30-day comment period for involved agencies.
The follow-through came fast. A public notice signed by Hares-Ryan announced a special board of trustees meeting for July 20, 2026, at 6 p.m. at the village hall, called for one purpose: “To discuss SEQR Parts 2 & 3 for a Water System Evaluation with LaBella Associates.” Two SEQR steps in a single month is a brisk pace for a village government that meets twice a month.
All of this is happening while Moravia digests the largest construction project it already has: the wastewater treatment plant upgrade on the Owasco Inlet side of the village. On October 30, 2025, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office announced a statewide round of $135 million in water infrastructure support that included, in the release’s own words, a “$10.8 million grant and financing package for upgrades at the wastewater treatment plant” for the Village of Moravia.
The board minutes track that project contractor by contractor. As of the May 29, 2026 cutoff date reported by MRB Group, the village’s construction manager on the plant, C.O. Falter Construction had completed 63.10 percent of its contract price, Patricia Electric stood at 62.02 percent, HMI Mechanical’s plumbing contract at 41.26 percent, and HMI’s HVAC contract at 30.48 percent. Four weeks earlier, at the May 1 cutoff, those numbers were 59.14, 56.58, 37.12 and 27.71 percent. Final completion is scheduled for November 17, 2026 for the general and electrical contracts, and January 3, 2027 for HVAC and plumbing.
The money is flowing at a scale unusual for a village budget. The bills approved May 26 included $1,415,578.08 in payments from the wastewater treatment plant capital project fund. The June 8 bills added $112,917.30 more, and June 22 another $927,900.73. Mayor Christopher Fulton reported at the June 22 meeting that the plant’s primary tank had been put in service and a leak addressed, though a sump pump caught in a flight mechanism would likely produce a repair bill for the village.
There were quieter milestones too. The May 26 minutes note that wastewater treatment plant operator Sean Cochran earned his 3A operator license. On June 8, after a public hearing drew no objections, the board voted to create a Sewer Equipment Reserve fund and seeded it with $25,000, part of a broader set of reserve transfers that also sent $10,000 to a water line replacement reserve and $16,230 to a sewer repair reserve on May 26.
Downtown, the village’s $2.25 million NY Forward award is moving from planning binders to bid tables. Moravia was named a first round NY Forward winner on February 14, 2023, one of three Central New York communities selected. Then Mayor Gary Mulvaney said at the time, “The Village of Moravia is a close-knit community with a wealth of culture, history and pride.” On May 22, 2024, the state announced the six funded projects: $640,000 for Main Street streetscape improvements, $500,000 to turn the former bank building at 142 Main Street into the Main Street Tavern, $392,000 to redesign Ethel Fuller Park, $328,000 to convert a vacant building at 66 Central Street into a new restaurant, $300,000 for a small project fund for commercial and mixed-use property improvements, and $90,000 for a flexible outdoor community space at Powers Library.
“We would like to thank everyone involved for the hard work and look forward to starting our next phase,” Fulton said in the state’s May 2024 announcement. “This is a great opportunity for the residents and future businesses.”
Two years later, that next phase has dates attached. At both June meetings, Fulton reported that the streetscape portion of the Main Street project was out to bid, with bids set to be unsealed June 26, 2026, at 2 p.m. And on May 26, LaBella designers Michael Cocquyt and Andrew Murphy walked the board through three alternates for the Ethel Fuller Park redesign, each built around a different bet on outside money. Option 1 put infrastructure first: parking, sidewalks, trees, furnishings and a basketball court funded by NY Forward, with a separate NY PLAYS grant application to cover the playground. Option 2 held the same plan but waited for clarity on whether the playground grant would come through. Option 3 guaranteed a new playground first, with parking, sidewalks, trees and the basketball court as potential additions.
The board chose the guarantee. A 4-0 vote approved the Option 3 timeline, meaning Moravia kids get a new playground whether or not the state grant materializes.
The same May meeting captured how many balls this small government is juggling at once. Matthew McKenna of MRB Group told the board that the next step after the wastewater upgrade is a high inflow and infiltration study, which involves opening manholes across the entire village and measuring flow velocity during and after rain events. The board approved moving forward with the grant funded study 4-0. Trustees also renewed community contracts for the 2026-27 year, including $2,200 for the Owasco Lake Watershed, $2,000 each for Moravia Youth League and Moravia Little League, $1,500 for the Locke-Mor Seniors, and $500 for the Garden Club.
Street level work continues alongside the big projects. On June 8 the board approved $74,805 to Seneca Stone for paving West Avenue, Park Street and Allis Avenue, plus $11,500 for a September street sweeper rental. The village also held its annual election June 16 for two trustee seats, and approved the annual Kiddie Parade for July 16.
For a village best known as the birthplace of President Millard Fillmore and the gateway to Fillmore Glen State Park, the summer of 2026 is shaping up as something less picturesque and more foundational. By early 2027, if the contractors hit their dates, Moravia will have a rebuilt sewer plant. By 2028, if the grant applications land, crews could be opening Aurora Street to start replacing water mains. The question the next set of minutes will start to answer is how much of the $14.4 million bill the state will pick up, and how much will land on the water bills of 1,224 residents.
CNY Signal reviewed the Village of Moravia board minutes for May 26, June 8 and June 22, 2026, the July 20 special meeting notice, and state announcements from February 2023, May 2024 and October 2025 for this report. The village posts minutes at villageofmoravia.com after approval.
Sources and verification
Every fact in this article was checked against primary documents and official records, including: villageofmoravia.com, drive.google.com, governor.ny.gov, en.wikipedia.org. Direct quotes are verbatim from the cited documents.
