David Harleman, Coplay-Whitehall Sewer Authority (CWSA) general plant manager, discussed plans for a sanitary extension line at Mechanicsville Road and MacArthur Road during the authority’s regular meeting Feb. 16.

“We were presented with the plans to install a 306-foot extension line to serve a proposed McDonald’s at the site,” he said.

Joseph Marx Jr., CWSA board member and a Whitehall Township commissioner, reported the township approved the McDonald’s site plans at a recent meeting.

“The extension serves a couple of purposes,” Marx said. “It gets service to the new McDonald’s, and it allows us to put service in to the church and the Rita’s along MacArthur (Road) that have asked for public sewer service.”

The official address for the proposed project is 2998 MacArthur Road. The board agreed to approve the project and move it to engineering for assessment.

In other news, board member James Carpenter suggested the board consider a solar array for the Eberhart Road pump station.

“We have investigated a proposal made by Endless Energy. They project a significant savings over our budgeted energy costs,” he said.

The parameters of the proposal are enticing. The company projects the life of the panels at 25 years. The installation costs put a break-even cost around 12 years. The break-even analysis anticipates a rate increase of 8 percent per year. Electrical installation is handled by a local company, Diefenderfer. Installation work carries a five-year warranty.

“I think it is something that we need to investigate. A few years ago, a project like this would not be feasible. The technology has improved, and the cost of the panels has come down,” Carpenter said.

Solar will not be the primary power for the pump station.

“A meter gets installed that sends power to the pump house. If more power is generated than is needed, the excess is fed back to the grid. The pump is always connected to the power station in case the panels can’t produce enough power,” Carpenter said.

Solar power generation peaks in the summer months. Chairman John Schreiner wants to see if the project can be moved forward quickly.

The project will need to be bid. Installation time is estimated at one month. Carpenter and Marx will check options to see if grants are available to reduce the upfront costs of the installation. Endless Energy estimated costs around $150,000.

Also at the meeting, contractors on the Front Street project in Coplay are getting the project moving forward. Completion was slowed by poor weather, ground that collapsed and overflowing trenches.

According to CWSA’s engineer, Darryl Jenkins, the lines controlled by Northampton Borough Municipal Authority (NBMA) are nearing completion. Once the NBMA lines are installed, the remainder of the sewer line can be completed. The NBMA repair was not initially part of the project, but the collapsing soil damaged the older water lines. NBMA made a decision to replace the old lines before the street was repaired.