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With work on Leitchfield’s new water intake winding down, the utilities commission is starting to make final payments to contractors.

Clay Pipeline of Manchester and Cleary Construction of Tompkinsville were the main companies working on the roughly $5 million project, which included putting a new raw water intake closer to Rough River Dam and building a nearly nine-mile pipeline to bring the water to the city.

Clay Pipeline built the $3.7 million pipeline, while Cleary built the $1.076 million intake.

During the commission’s Thursday, Dec. 6, meeting, city utilities superintendent Kevin Pharis noted that about 90 percent of the retainage for Clay Pipeline has been released at this point, with only a few final cleanup issues to be addressed. Some of that work may have to wait until spring, he said. The city will hold enough funding back to cover those anticipated costs.

In a construction contract, retainage is money earned by a contractor but not paid to the contractor until the completion of construction or some other agreed-upon date. The amount is held back as assurance for the quality of the work.

Pharis said a related contract with Horsley Construction $44,200 to replace 400 feet of 18-inch discharge line at the water plant has been completed, and the city is awaiting some final change orders from Cleary that are expected next week.

A final progress meeting on the project is set for early January, Pharis said.

Leitchfield draws water from Rough River Lake for residential and commercial use. The new intake, about 4.5 miles from Rough River Dam, will replace the current one that goes from Peter Cave to Clifty Creek. The new spot will give the city a larger area to draw water from during winter pool, allowing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to drop the lake level. It also could allow the city to draw more water overall if needed for future growth.