Columbus to advertise construction of Home Road water plant, bids to open June 3

The director of Columbus Water and Power told council the Home Road water plant — described as one of the most significant infrastructure investments in the city’s history — will be advertised for construction this week, with bids scheduled to open on June 3, 2026.

According to the director, the site was purchased in 2015, and the project is expected to add 48 million gallons per day of capacity when it comes online in 2032 and can be expanded to 80 million gallons per day as growth requires. The current estimated project cost cited in council was $1,600,000,000.

Council members characterized the project as a generational investment that will strengthen long-term water reliability, expand capacity, and create construction jobs and opportunities for local contractors. The director said the advertisement milestone follows years of planning, engineering, environmental review and financial structuring.

Next steps: solicitation documents will be issued, bids will be opened June 3, 2026, and the project will return to council for contract authorization and any loan or funding approvals required during construction procurement.