REMERTON — Citizens of Remerton should be pleased to learn that their water woes may soon be over.

During Monday’s regular meeting, a split vote among council members resulted in the city of Remerton entering into immediate negotiations with the city of Valdosta to purchase water. The vote was 3 to 2, with council members Sherry Wood and Ryan Gordon opposing the decision.

The discussion to purchase water from the city of Valdosta began after the Camp, Dresser, and McKee, Inc. engineering firm returned to council following a water study, which began in the fall of 2007, with recommendations for improving the odor, color and taste of the city’s water supply. CDM presented four alternatives at a special called meeting in June, one of which included purchasing water from Valdosta through three connection points.

This alternative carried a total cost estimate of $180,000, according to a previous report by The Times.

The city is also under a consent order from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division for disinfection byproducts. To clear the order, the city must pass inspection four quarters in a row.

Thursday, the city passed its third inspection, according to McDougal.

“Our goal is to resolve all water issues and to do whatever we need to do to take care of the odor, taste, color and regulatory issues with our water,” Remerton Mayor Cornelius Holsendolph said.

Although recommendations to purchase water from Valdosta came in at the lowest cost among the four alternatives, the possibility still met some resistance with citizens who had fears that the agreement would limit the autonomy of the town.

City Manager Brian McDougal and Mayor Cornelius Holsendolph estimate that the project could be completed within six months, after which citizens would begin to see an immediate difference in the quality of their water.

Valdosta City Manager Larry Hanson stated that Valdosta does have the capacity to service Remerton.

The city recently added 7.5 million gallons of water daily capacity to the water plant. The city of Remerton uses 130,000 gallons per day, or 4 million gallons of water per month on average, according to McDougal.

Hanson stated that an intergovernmental agreement will be drawn up and should be ready to present to the council for consideration by the first meeting in August.

“I don’t think it will be overly complicated or take too long,” Hanson said.