Council reallocates $25,000 to bench-scale testing for new water treatment plant design

The City Council approved a request by Reggie Wenzel, Water Department Superintendent, to reallocate $25,000 of previously authorized funds to pay for bench-scale testing by Wood and Curran to evaluate treatment technologies for the planned new water treatment plant.

Wenzel said bench-scale testing will use samples from the lake and allow engineers to pilot about eight technologies to determine which are most effective for local water quality. "So they can come back and say, these ones work, these ones don't," he said, explaining the tests will inform the plant's technology selection and final design.

Councilors discussed funding sources and timeline. Staff said they are close to assembling the full funding package for the plant; design work was described as about a one-year effort followed by a multi-year construction phase. "So a year design, a couple year construction. So we're probably looking at '27-ish to be done," Wenzel said.

A motion to reallocate the drainage funds (previously set aside during an emergency repair) in the amount of $25,000 for bench-scale testing passed by voice vote; the transcript does not record a roll-call breakdown.