City council hears progress report on wastewater plant rehab; approves $9.795 million bond sale

Contractors gave the City of Batavia a May update on the multi‑phase wastewater treatment plant rehabilitation and the City Council approved a related bond sale to help pay for construction.

The presentation by project staff described completed work at the new headworks, primary clarifiers and sludge handling building, and said most equipment for the current phase is on site. "All of the equipment for this phase of the treatment plant, it's all on‑site," the project presenter said. The presenter also told council members the contractor was keeping current schedule dates and that the project could finish earlier than originally planned.

The project team said site work has included exterior brick and door installation at the headworks, installation and hydrostatic testing of diversion gates between the four new primary clarifiers, interconnecting piping between clarifiers, and rehabilitation work on final clarifiers. The team reported unexpected repairs discovered during clarifier rehabilitation — including replacement of corroded anchor bolts at a clarifier center pier — and said that those repairs were part of the ongoing scope.

Project financials and schedule: the presenter stated a total project budget in the range of about $43 million and reported change orders as modest relative to the overall contract (the presenter cited roughly $13,000 in net change orders to date). The contractor reported about 60% completion by schedule, and the project manager said payments made to date reflected roughly 88% of the contract value. The team listed milestone targets they are tracking: final clarifiers expected to be completed the next month, the headworks substantially complete in August, primary clarifiers substantially complete in September, and the primary clarifier control building and sludge handling building substantially complete in October, with an anticipated final completion that could be about five months ahead of the original June 2026 date.

City officials and project staff emphasized reasons for the upgrades: replacement of aging equipment, evolving regulatory requirements tied to the plant's NPDES permit, and capacity needs. The presenters noted the plant was planned to expand from 4.2 to 4.9 million gallons per day in the facility plan adopted in February 2008 and said the current phases also prepare the site for later biological nutrient removal and tertiary treatment work.

Financing action: during the same meeting the City Council considered and approved an ordinance authorizing the issuance of approximately $9,795,000 in general obligation bonds to finance capital improvements "including construction of a waste water treatment plant and rehabilitation of a lift station and a force main," as read into the record by a council member. The ordinance language as read in the meeting states the bonds will be issued "providing for the levy and collection of a direct annual tax sufficient to pay the principal and interest of said bonds and authorize the sale of said bonds to the purchaser thereof." City staff later noted that each year the council will see an abatement resolution because wastewater revenues are expected to pay the bonds rather than ad valorem taxes.

What was not decided: the presentation was informational and there was no vote on scope changes during the update. The council approved the bond ordinance; no additional contract award or new budget appropriation was announced during the meeting.

Why it matters: the plant serves the city's wastewater service area, and the work aims to replace end‑of‑life equipment, meet tightening phosphorus and other permit limits, and provide additional capacity tied to community growth. The council and project team framed the work as phased to maintain continuous operations on a constrained site while positioning the plant for later biological and tertiary upgrades.

Ending note: project staff told council members they were available to answer follow‑up questions by phone or email.