The Georgia Environmental Finance Authority and Georgia Department of Community Affairs recently awarded a 40-year loan of $29.1 million to Paulding County for the construction of the Richland Creek reservoir.

The loan was among a total of $90.5 million in loans and $9 million of state direct investment for eight water supply projects through the Governor’s Water Supply Program.

The total cost of the Paulding County reservoir project is $86.4 million, so the county will provide $57.3 million in funding, according to a press release.

According to Dallas Mayor Boyd Austin, the county bought the property planned for the reservoir about 14 years ago.

A public notice about the reservoir posted online by the Army Corps of Engineers states that the project design proposes a 1,360-foot long dam on Richland Creek in north Paulding that would create a 305-acre reservoir pool with a maximum depth of 120 feet.

According to the design, 40.4 million gallons of water per day would be pumped from the Etowah River to supply the raw water for the reservoir.

The project is still under review by the Army Corps of Engineers. Construction may not begin until a permit is received from the Corps.

Currently, the county buys its water from the Cobb County Water System.

Austin serves on the Georgia Environmental Finance Board and was instrumental in bringing financing to the county.

“Water is one of the three building blocks for economic development,” he said.

Austin said the permit process and construction of the reservoir was a “pretty drawn-out process.”

“Having this financing in place allows them to move quickly once they get everything ready,” he said.