Mebane breaks ground on $93 million wastewater plant expansion, celebrates new water tower

MEBANE, N.C. — City officials and state and federal representatives on Tuesday broke ground on a more than $93 million expansion of Mebane's water resource recovery facility, a three-year project city leaders said is designed to boost wastewater treatment capacity and support the area's growth.

"If you look at this project here, $93,000,000 for what you see behind me," said State Rep. Steve Ross, describing the scale of the upgrade and the work already underway. Ross said the plant will increase treatment from about 2.5 million gallons per day to roughly 4 million gallons per day as designed, with room to expand to 6 million.

Ross and other speakers warned that meeting state water-quality requirements adds cost. "The Jordan Lake rules ... and the biological nutrient removal that's going into this plant — every piece of that adds a tremendous amount of cost," Ross said, noting elements such as screening, grit removal, multi-stage treatment and ultraviolet disinfection.

Mayor Ed Hooks called the facility "amazing" and said the project represents Mebane's long-term commitment to infrastructure and smart growth. He described the undertaking as a three-year effort and credited state and federal partners for critical financial contributions, saying roughly one-third of the cost came through state appropriations and federal funding secured with help from local lawmakers.

The mayor also recognized project partners and contractors, including Crowder Construction as general contractor and McGill Associates as project engineer, and singled out wastewater staff for their role in planning and operation.

Representatives from state and federal offices attended or sent representatives. Ethan Gay, representing U.S. Rep. Valerie Fushi, said water projects were a top priority for the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Daniel Durociak, for Rep. Richard Hudson, and Mike Finley, for Sen. Tom Tillis, also delivered remarks praising local planning and economic benefits.

State Rep. Dennis Bridal described a regional response to storm damage, saying he and colleagues formed a caucus to track impacts from Storm Chantal across several counties and to gather local damage assessments to inform allocation of recovery funds.

Organizers also noted a ribbon cutting earlier in the day for a new elevated water tank. After the speeches, officials marked the ceremonial groundbreaking and invited attendees to site tours and refreshments.

Construction will proceed while officials maintain that continued planning and regulatory compliance are necessary to accommodate Mebane's projected growth. City officials said they will continue to provide updates as the project advances.