City updates $95M-plus water-supply and treatment program; McMurtry pipeline design at 60%, construction planned for spring 2026

City officials on May 19 gave an extensive update on the Stillwater Utilities Authority's multi-year raw water supply and treatment program, reporting construction progress on several high-priority projects, updated cost estimates and a timeline for a new Lake McMurtry pipeline that staff said will improve resiliency and provide a cost-effective means to meet peak demand.

Candy Starring, joined by Chris Humes and other utilities staff, told the council the city has re-phased its approach since 2022 and is pursuing a sequence of projects that together restore and expand capacity rather than building a single new plant. "In August 2022, this was the phased improvement plan that staff brought to you all," Starring said. She said some construction costs have increased as projects moved from concept to bidding: the green phase is now estimated at about $31 million (previously $25 million) and the yellow phase at about $28 million (previously $23 million). The chemicals project was described as "about a $30,000,000 project, all in."

Chris Humes described the finished-water pump station construction and capacity design. "We're actually building this one for 24,000,000 gallons per day, and then making accommodations for 30,000,000 gallons per day," Humes said, noting much of the piping and underground work is complete and that the project was about half done and on schedule and budget at the time of the meeting. Humes also described a recovered-water pump station that returns solids-handling flow to the head of plant and improves plant efficiency.

Staff reported the treatment plant currently averages about 6 to 8 MGD, with historical peaks near 14 MGD; the plant has mechanical capacity near 18 MGD today. The city's economic development agreements related to data center expansion allocate 2.7 MGD for the first two phases (with benchmarks raising that allocation toward 3.5 MGD), which staff said will be accommodated within project planning. "The current allotment is 2.7 MGD," Starring said. "Our normal flow is around 6 to 8 MGD."

A major element of the plan is a roughly 7-mile pipeline to Lake McMurtry to add a secondary raw water source and enable "peak shaving" on high-demand days. Staff reported the pipeline design is at about 60% complete; negotiations for easements will begin with landowners in the fall and construction is planned to start in spring 2026 with an in-service target of January 2028. "We're very close on the 60% design of the pump station," staff said, and described the McMurtry work as critical for resiliency and cost savings compared to other routing options.

Other program elements discussed included replacement of aging solids-contact units (SCUs), new filters and a new clear well to meet DEQ requirements, upgrades to ozone and chlorine systems, and work to address PFOS in the treatment train (study planned for FY 2026). Starring said overall expansion scenarios could reach roughly $210 million plus PFOS-related costs; staff are pursuing loans, grants and ARPA funds to fund portions of the program and noted that previously appropriated ARPA dollars and other grants total about $9.5 million (plus ARPA design funds applied earlier). The FY 2025 program combined with McMurtry was described as about $95 million in currently scoped work.

Councilors asked about sequencing, construction status and funding sources; staff said several projects are under construction or complete (lagoons, pathotic protection work, recovered-water projects), the chemicals project is under construction and the finished-water and recovered-water pump stations are in active construction. Starring reminded council members that rate increases adopted in late 2023 are intended to support debt service for these improvements.

The council also took time to recognize Candy Starring's retirement at month's end and thanked her for long service leading water projects; Starring said she appreciated the council's remarks and that she considered herself "a very small part of a huge undertaking." Staff said Bill Millis will lead the department going forward. No formal council action was required on the update; staff said they would return with further design milestones, easement negotiations and grant/loan packaging as projects advance.