Metropolitan Sewer District outlines $105 million Carrier Bridge pump station replacement, flags park impacts and multiyear construction

Metropolitan Sewer District officials told the Asheville City Council that MSD will replace the Carrier Bridge pump station — the system's largest station — with a deeper, higher‑capacity facility sited next to French Broad River Park.

MSD Director of Engineering Hunter Carson said the replacement will increase peak pumping capacity from the current 22,000,000 gallons per day to 40,000,000 gallons per day (a 2070 flow projection) and will require a large excavation about 70 feet deep. "This is a very deep station," Carson said, noting the station footprint will be roughly 100 feet by 40 feet and will include odor control (carbon scrubbers), retaining walls and large inlet and discharge piping.

The project will also install two new river crossings for pressurized force mains and rehabilitate about 2,000 feet of existing 54‑inch sewer pipe adjacent to Lyman Street. Carson described the river crossings as open‑cut installations using cofferdams so crews can dewater and install pipe in the dry before reconnecting spans. "Both of those will be installed using a coffer dam," Carson said.

MSD said the new pump station site was purchased from Duke Energy several years ago and that some tree clearing already occurred on the parcel. Carson and MSD staff said they worked with city staff to route pipes through the park to avoid additional tree loss and to preserve existing park structures, including a gazebo and restroom facility. Council members and the public pressed MSD about the tree clearing and resilience in a flood‑prone corridor; Carson said the existing station sits about 2 feet above the FEMA 500‑year flood elevation and reported it remained operable during the recent storm. MSD engineering staff said the new station will be anchored into bedrock and concrete‑cased to improve resilience.

MSD provided a high‑level schedule: the river‑crossing contract has been awarded and construction is expected to begin this summer and take about 18 months; pipeline construction is expected to take roughly two years once mobilized; the pump station construction is estimated at about three years, putting final station completion into 2029. Carson said MSD expects the project cost to be about $105,000,000 and that funding will come from ratepayer sources and bonds. "It's ratepayer funded, but through the — yeah — bonds," he said.

MSD also listed several upcoming or related water system projects that shaped its case for multi‑year rate adjustments and capital planning, and staff noted rating agencies are monitoring water system finances. Carson and panelists emphasized coordination with city staff on alignments and park restoration and noted bypass pumping and Rad Tip Greenway closures will be needed at times during pipe rehabilitation work.

Council members and residents asked multiple technical questions about flood resilience, pipe burial depth and how existing underwater crossings fared in the recent hurricane; MSD answered that most failures observed after the storm were aerial creek crossings and that existing subaqueous crossings that were anchored to bedrock have generally fared better. MSD staff said the timing of park restoration and coordination with city park rehabilitation efforts post‑storm informed the construction schedule and alignments.

The presentation closed with MSD staff offering to provide additional technical information to council and noting upcoming public outreach as construction plans progress.