Wastewater Treatment Facilities

That will be determined when the design is more refined. An initial layout of the facility showed the path being relocated closer to the property line.

Yes, the old wastewater plant will be completely decommissioned. That property will eventually be repurposed. The use of that property has not yet been fully considered. The use of the space will need to be decided upon, and then funds raised to build the space for this use.

The new facility will be built to meet the projected needs for the next 20 years, with capacity to add on additional equipment for longer term growth.

The location is chosen to be the lot that the city owns. We are too far along in the process to change locations. However, the layout is still in design stages so it is the perfect time to consider the best use and arrangement of the current PW buildings and the exact location of the wastewater facility on the City lot. We evaluated building the WWTP on the Public Works shops and rebuilding the shops elsewhere on the same lot. This would add at least $5 million to the project cost.

The Council is allowed to discuss real estate transactions in an executive session, and the City Attorney was advising the City Council through the process so that they would follow any legal requirements. For the August 14, 2023, City Council Meeting, the Wastewater Treatment Plant discussion was an agenda item following executive session. If the Council had directed staff to begin negotiations on a property purchase, they would not have been able to discuss the location of the property that evening. The topic was listed as a general discussion on the agenda following the executive session, and there were members of the public who attended the meeting and commented.

You can view the meeting packet, minutes, and video where the Council discusses their decision here: https://www.cityofestacada.org/bc/meeting/city-council-meeting-0

Following the executive session (which was not recorded) the City Attorney gives a thorough overview of the process and the decision. (approx. 1 hour 26 minutes into the meeting).

The original location for the wastewater facility in 2021 was on the Public Works/Portal site. At the direction of the Council, city staff have spent the past two years seeking out options for property where the wastewater facility could be built rather than on the City property, however, due to land use restrictions, costs, time constraints, and the availability of willing property sellers, the most viable location is the City property that was chosen.

The design showing in the preliminary plan (see page 135 of the Preliminary Design Report) just shows feasibility on the lot. While we are still in the process of layout, many of the processes require a specific layout with buildings set in a strategic position. We may adjust the layout but there are many variables which will ultimately decide the layout.