County water is coming to parts of south Fayette not currently served.

The Fayette County government's Water Committee opened bids Tuesday for loop six, part of its long-range plan to extend water service to all unincorporated areas of the county, and will vote on its recommendation for a contractor to complete the work during its regular meeting Oct. 14, said Water System director Tony Parrott.

The project, at an estimated cost of $2 million, will extend water lines starting at Rising Star Road and Ga. Highway 85, following Rising Star to Brooks Woolsey Road, then to Morgan Mill Road, from there to the 85 Connector, and back to Hwy. 85, tieing into loop five at Starrs Mill.

Water officials also continue to work toward approval of federal permits to build Lake McIntosh on Line Creek to provide more water for Fayette's future.

The Water System has tentatively scheduled a tour of the lake project area for county commissioners and others for late October. The session will start with a presentation in the commissioners' meeting room in the morning, followed by tours of the lake area and wetlands mitigation sites in the afternoon.

The county is seeking a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to build the lake and take drinking water from the creek. The process is expected to take five years.

Water officials say lake McIntosh will probably be Fayette's last water collection site. If the county's need for water grows beyond the estimated 30 million gallons a day that will be available after the lake is finished, it will have to buy water from elsewhere, officials say.