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Paris receives detailed progress report on wastewater plant Phase 1 and Phase 2
Summary
Engineers told the City Council that Phase 1 of the wastewater treatment plant upgrades is on track for substantial completion this summer while Phase 2 is scheduled for substantial completion in January 2026; contractors reported weather delays but substantial construction progress across major process areas.
Justin Rackley, Garver engineer of record, told the Paris City Council on March 24 that Phase 1 of the city’s wastewater treatment plant improvements is moving steadily and Phase 2 is underway with work focused at the plant and at a Flow Equalization Basin site south of the plant.
The presentation gave a timeline, progress percentages for key process areas, and a summary of remaining critical-path work. Rackley said notice to proceed for Phase 1 was issued on Jan. 11, 2023, and the project is expected to reach substantial completion July 22, 2025, with final completion projected Aug. 14, 2025. Phase 2’s substantial completion is scheduled for Jan. 14, 2026, and final completion for April 14, 2026.
The update matters because the treatment plant is a 24/7 service whose performance must be maintained while contractors build new infrastructure. Rackley said the design and sequencing were chosen so construction would not interrupt the plant’s ability to process raw wastewater, and he outlined the work still on the critical path.
Rackley provided process-area updates and percent-complete estimates based on photos and an aerial flyover: aeration basins (splitter box and center walkway in place; diffuser and air piping next; a blower and electrical building are being enclosed), primary clarifiers (walls and launders under construction; ~60% complete), mixed liquor and return/waste activated sludge pump station (~63% complete), final clarifiers (rehab of three existing clarifiers with installation of influent launders and Stanford baffles; ~55% complete), recycle flow pump station (~68% complete), and solids dewatering building (belt filter press installed). Rackley called installation of diffusers and air piping a critical-path item because it will allow demolition of existing orbital units and permit Phase 2 work to proceed inside the facility boundary.
For Phase 2 work at the Flow Equalization Basin site on Stillhouse Road, Rackley said crews are installing headworks screening and grit removal equipment and an electrical building that will house an emergency standby generator. The project also includes a roughly three-mile, 30-inch forcemain; Rackley said subcontractor Wicker had “landed at the FEB site” and that the forcemain was about 85% complete as the presentation was prepared. He described substantial excavation work affected by winter rain and credited contractor Drake with dewatering efforts.
Council members asked several technical questions during the presentation. When asked how large the aeration basin is, Rackley replied: “It’s roughly 230 feet.” He also confirmed the project team will provide the council a copy of the presentation slides for review.
Rackley cautioned that contractors will submit schedule updates as they reconcile weather-related delays and other impacts; the city will receive a revised schedule after those reconciliations. Interim Utilities Director Danny Rowell introduced Rackley and said the city would continue to monitor contractor reports and bring schedule updates to council when available.
The presentation emphasized staged work to maintain plant operations, multiple contractor teams (cited in the presentation as Veil, Drake and subcontractor Wicker), and remaining critical items that will determine the final completion timeline. Council did not take any formal action on the presentation; the item was an informational update.
