11/21/2014 ​At the November 18th board meeting for the Bedford Regional Water Authority (“Authority”), the board unanimously voted to approve two changes to how rates are implemented. These changes were a direct result of customers making their requests to the board. “The Authority’s primary focus is to serve customers in the best way possible. Hearing…

8/21/2014 ​At the August 19th Planning Commission meeting for Bedford County, the members unanimously voted to recommend the approval of two Special Use Permits (SUPs) presented by the Bedford Regional Water Authority (“Authority”). The two permits were in conjunction with the Smith Mountain Lake Water Treatment Plant and Pipeline project. The first SUP application was…

5/8/2014 For the first time in Virginia, two water utilities have partnered to jointly own and operate a water treatment facility. The Bedford Regional Water Authority and the Western Virginia Water Authority signed an agreement Wednesday, May 7, 2014 to work together to develop a new water treatment facility at Smith Mountain Lake. This new…

6/25/2014 ​The Board of Zoning Appeals (“BZA”) for Bedford County approved the Bedford Regional Water Authority’s (“Authority”) request for a zoning variance at the BZA’s June 24th meeting. This variance request was for replacing the water intake building at Smith Mountain Lake. A presentation given at the meeting stated “According to the Virginia Department of…

6/17/2014 ​Customers of the Bedford Regional Water Authority (“Authority”) in the Town of Bedford and Bedford County will have a new water rate effective July 1, 2014. At the rates public hearing held on Tuesday, June 17th in the Authority’s board room, two people attended to speak at the hearing. Both were landlords in the…

8/5/2014 ​​The Hillcrest neighborhood in Bedford County has struggled with a reliable water source for decades. Since the 1970s, this high maintenance and expensive well system has been the responsibility of the local water authority. As of July 30, 2014 the well system no longer supplies the water to the neighborhood; a waterline extension project…

6/3/2014 ​On May 29, 2014, the Bedford Regional Water Authority (“Authority”) received approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) to expand the water intake at Smith Mountain Lake. This approval is another milestone reached by the Authority in the process of building a new water treatment plant and waterline that would expand water services…

3/31/2014 ​The Certificate for Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting has been awarded to Bedford County Public Service Authority (now the Bedford Regional Water Authority) by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) for its comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR). The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition…

​The lawsuit filed against the Bedford Regional Water Authority (“Authority”) is now in the process of being dropped. On Friday, February 21st Bedford Weaving filed a motion for a non-suit at the Bedford County Circuit Court. The lawsuit was filed by Bedford Weaving in January. It claimed that the Authority did not have the power…

1/29/2014 The Bedford Regional Water Authority (“Authority”) filed a Demurrer on Monday, January 27, 2014 in response to local company Bedford Weaving’s law suit. The Authority has also formally responded to several accusations in a letter to the Planning Commission sent by Bedford Weaving. Bedford Weaving’s concern with the Authority is that the water source…