Kenny Howard said he’d gotten a lot of letters in his time in city government, but this one was he was hoping to get.

The Hinesville city manager said the state Environmental Protection Division has approved the water withdrawal for a well the city plans to build just across the county line in Long County. Howard said he was reporting the approval to city council “with great excitement” and called the approval letter “the most significant thing” he’s received.

The permit, which will enable the city to pump as much 1 million gallons per day on an annual basis, gives the city water to provide for future development, particularly on the city’s westside.

“We were at 90% of our capacity,” he said of the city’s groundwater withdrawal. “Once you reach capacity, you cease to grow.”

With the city’s limit on withdrawal from the Floridan aquifer approaching, Hinesville leaders sought a solution to provide more water for the city’s booming westside. As a yellow zone county, groundwater withdrawals from the Floridan are restricted for Liberty County.

Long County, however, is a green zone county, meaning its withdrawals are not capped.

“Over three years ago, in anticipation of getting to this point, we took the initiative of talking with Long County,” Howard said.

Howard called the negotiations with Long County “very, very tough.” City engineer Paul Simonton played a pivotal role, Howard said, and Mayor Karl Riles thanked his predecessor, Allen Brown, for his work in getting the well deal done. Howard and Riles also extended their thanks to state Reps. Buddy Deloach (R-Shellman Bluff), also a former Hinesville mayor, and Al Williams (R-Midway).

“Buddy Deloach was vested in this and worked tirelessly,” said Council member Jason Floyd.

The well, Howard said, will allow Hinesville to continue its growth for the next 10 to 20 years.

“Under no circumstance could we accommodate growth like that without this,” he said.

The next steps are to send out requests for proposal, and the city projects taking bids in December. Construction on the well could start as soon as March 2025. Long County also will use the well for its water needs.

As part of the agreement, the city will pay Long County a one-time fee of $500,000 within 30 days of receiving the permit. That money is expected to go toward Long County developing its water system.

The city and county will own the well jointly, and the city will be responsible for all operational costs and will maintain compliance with guidelines and regulations. The cost of construction will be split equally between the city and Long County.

The City of Hinesville is permitted currently to withdraw 4 million gallons per day. Impending state reductions are projected to curtail that amount to 3.85 million gallons per day beginning in 2025. In 2021, the city withdrew an average of nearly 3.48 million gallons per day.

Georgia Tech’s Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development has forecast Hinesville’s population to reach nearly 44,000 in 2040.

At that population, the city’s need for water is projected to be 1.8 million gallons per day over what its permitted capacity will be in 2025.

The application was submitted in February 2023 and the EPD took public comments until January on the permit application.

“We are very excited,” Howard said. “Getting this has taken a load off of me. I didn’t want to be in this seat and put a moratorium on development in Hinesville. All hands were on deck in getting this across the finish line.”