PRINCETON - The town is taking over its water and sewer operations in a bid to cut costs by doing the work with town employees instead of outside help.

Town officials expect to save about $260,000 over the next six years. For the first six months, the savings is pegged at $9,742.

"I thought we could get it a lot cheaper with [town employees] instead of contracting it out," Commissioner Billy Sutton said. "I've been wanting that for the past four years."

But Sutton cautioned that the plan won't result immediately in lower rates for residents.

"It'll probably be a five-year period before we see any rates going down," he said. "We had to buy a lot of equipment that we didn't have."

That equipment includes a sewer jetter, a sewer camera, a lawnmower and a truck. A $60,000 bank loan will finance the equipment purchase.

Envirolink, a private company, had maintained the town's water lines and run Princeton's sewage-treatment plant. At a Board of Commissioners meeting earlier this month, the company made a last-ditch effort to keep the town's business, but its offer to lower the price of service didn't sway commissioners. Envirolink plans to lay off its one employee in Princeton, but the town will hire him in a similar position. The town will also revise the job descriptions of several existing employees, and each will get a 5-percent raise.

The town staff's report on the project states that Princeton will benefit from having more manpower for all aspects of operations. Also, the town will have a greater sense of ownership over its water and sewer operations, the report said.

The report does note some negative aspects of the plan, including a learning curve for staff, the expense of hiring a new employee and the cost of equipment.

Envirolink will still provide personnel and equipment in case of an emergency.