Published: May 05, 2008 09:40 am      

Otter Creek project to begin this month

Two water treatment facilities to be eliminated

After months of planning, the Otter Creek Waste Water Treatment Plant construction project will begin Wednesday, May 14 with a groundbreaking ceremony beginning at 10:30 a.m.

The project site is at 2001 Red House Road and is being done to eliminate the existing Tates Creek and Dreaming Creek waste water treatment plants.

“It’s going to be about a 30-month process,” said Scott Althauser, superintendent of Richmond Utilities. “We’ve done all our preliminary work and Mother Nature would be the only thing to hold us up.”

An entrance road has been built and dirt should start being moved today, but the construction part of the project should be ready to begin by May 14, Althauser said.

The construction of the new plant is being estimated to cost about $30 million. In addition, it will take about $25 million to decommission the Tates Creek and Dreaming Creek plants.

The work is being funded through a KIA (Kentucky Infrastructure Authority) loan with a 20-year payback plan.

The new treatment plant will pump about 8 million gallons of water each day. The Tates Creek and Dreaming Creek treatment plants pump only 3 million gallons daily, Althauser said.

The elimination of the two existing treatment plants will save funds that were being used on the operations including treatment chemicals and maintenance.

Richmond Utilities sells water to the City of Richmond, the Madison County Utility District and the Kirksville Water District.

The project will increase sewer rates slightly for the next six years.

The average rate in 2008, which is $12.03 inside the city and $24.08 outside the city, will increase to $30.34 and $60.72, respectively, by 2014, according to a rate scale distributed at Tuesday’s workshop.

The scheduled increases (for the first 300 cubic feet of service) are: 2009 — $13.84 inside the city, $27.69 outside the city; 2010 — $16.19 inside the city, $32.40 outside the city; 2011 — $18.95 inside the city, $37.91 outside the city; 2012 — $22.17 inside the city, $44.35 outside the city; 2013 — $25.93 inside the city, $51.89 outside the city; and 2014 — $30.34 inside the city, $60.72 outside the city.

“This is going to prepare us for the future,” Althauser said. “It will be cheaper to operate on a month-to-month basis. It’s going to be costly upfront, but should save money overall.”

Ronica Shannon can be reached at rshannon@richmondregister.com or 623-1669, Ext. 234.