Safe Drinking Water Finally Reaches Macedonia Hill After a Decade of Advocacy and Collaboration

On April 22, 2026, Earth Day, residents of Macedonia Hill in Lawrence County, Ohio gathered to mark a historic milestone: the completion of the Macedonia Hill Water Main Extension Project. With the cutting of a ribbon at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, a community that had lacked access to safe, reliable drinking water for generations officially connected to a public water system for the first time.

Macedonia Hill sits just miles away from several municipalities where public water service has long been available, yet its residents, 157 people across 46 households, had relied on hauled water, bottled water, cisterns, or private wells. Data collected in 2019 showed that more than 60 percent of households depended on hauled or bottled water, nearly 30 percent used cisterns, and only 10 percent relied on private wells for drinking water. Testing later that year revealed that 83 percent of sampled wells were contaminated with Total Coliform bacteria and E. coli, underscoring a serious public health risk.

The lack of safe drinking water was particularly concerning given the area’s historical and cultural significance. Macedonia Hill is home to Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, the oldest surviving antebellum Black church in Ohio and the first Black church established in the state. The site is recognized through the National Park Service Underground Railroad Network to Freedom and includes historic burials tied to the Macedonia Free Black Settlement and U.S. Colored Troops Civil War veterans.

Early efforts to address the water crisis began in 2016, when a meeting chaired by Congressman Bill Johnson brought attention to the need for a waterline extension. In 2018, the Lawrence County Commissioners formed the Lawrence County Rural Water District to coordinate stakeholders and focus on supplying public water to rural areas without access to safe drinking water.

A critical turning point occurred on February 26, 2019, when agency representatives, engineers, elected officials, water providers, and residents met to formally establish a plan for planning, design, financing, and construction. That meeting laid the foundation for years of coordinated work that followed.

Kurtis Strickland, working through the Rural Community Assistance Partnership (RCAP), played a central role in advancing the Macedonia Hill Water Main Extension Project from concept to completion. RCAP provided sustained advocacy, project development, facilitation, and financial coordination over multiple years, working closely with the Hecla Water Association, Lawrence County Commissioners, and the Lawrence County Rural Water District.

Strickland helped guide early planning efforts, supported community engagement, and assisted in securing and coordinating more than $6 million in grant financing from state and federal sources. RCAP also supported grant disbursement management and reporting, ensuring that funding requirements were met and the project stayed on track.

At the April 2026 ribbon‑cutting ceremony, Strickland presented the project history, outlined the multi‑year timeline, and recognized the agencies and partners whose contributions made the project possible, reflecting RCAP’s long‑term involvement throughout each phase of development.

Engineering studies completed in 2020 identified steep terrain and rocky soil conditions that significantly increased construction complexity and cost. Initial estimates exceeded $4 million, later refined to approximately $6 million as project scope and elevation requirements were finalized.

Key funding milestones included a 2021 H2Ohio grant supporting project design, federal U.S. EPA funding through the Omnibus Appropriations Act in 2022, ARPA funding from Lawrence County, Ohio Builds Water Infrastructure Grants, and financial support from the Governor’s Office of Appalachia. By mid‑2024, full construction funding had been secured.

Construction began in October 2024 under contract with Southern Ohio Trenching and Excavation, Inc. The completed project expanded the Hecla Water Association’s service area using its Shaffer Hill ground storage tank, added a continuously operated booster station with standby power, and installed approximately 40,000 feet of new water main. A redundant main along Solida Road was included to improve system pressure and reliability.

Construction was officially completed in April 2026.

The completion of the Macedonia Hill Water Main Extension Project delivers safe, reliable, and affordable drinking water to residents who had lived for decades without it. The project reduces public health risks, preserves a nationally significant historic community, and demonstrates how long‑term collaboration, technical assistance, and sustained advocacy can close critical infrastructure gaps in rural Appalachia.