With FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) funding and a recent N.C. Rural Center grant, the City of Saluda won&squo;t pay a dime for its waste water treatment plant rebuild.

Saluda City Council met last week and announced it received $456,688 from the N.C. Rural Center for the project. FEMA also previously granted the city $930,100 for the rebuild following extensive damage to the facility during Hurricane Frances in 2004.

The rural center grant, like the FEMA donation, requires no matching funds, which means the rebuild will require no local funding.

Since the facility was damaged in Hurricane Frances, Saluda has continued to use the wastewater treatment plant and kept it operational and within compliance with additional monitoring and care.

Upgrades to the wastewater treatment plant have been ongoing since the FEMA assistance was received and should be completed soon.