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Regional wastewater plant near capacity; Centerton staff say upgrades and permits could free capacity in coming weeks
Summary
Centerton staff and developers reported the regional wastewater plant serving part of the area is near capacity. City staff said contractors and Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) permitting work are underway to increase inflow handling, but approvals and construction could take months to years and are delaying subdivision approvals.
City staff and several developers told the Centerton City Council on Feb. 11 that sewer capacity at the regional wastewater plant south of the city is limiting development approvals and prompting near-term delays for multiple subdivisions.
A city staff update said the regional plant has plans sized for approximately 3.8 million gallons per day of influent. Centerton contributes roughly 1.3 million gallons per day of that total, with other large commercial users and neighboring cities accounting for the remainder. Staff said the plant is operating at about 95–96% of permitted inflow and cannot take additional wastewater without upgrades or permit modifications.
City staff reported meetings with the Arkansas Department of Health and regional planning officials. The plant operator has applied to ADH to increase the headworks capacity and has hired a contractor; staff said the 30-day public review period for the permit application has closed and the contractor has begun mobilizing equipment. Officials told the council they hope initial work to increase inflow processing can begin in the next few weeks, though full resolution of system-wide capacity constraints could take one to three years.
Developers and contractors urged the council to press for faster approvals and clearer communication. Skip Anderson of Anderson Custom Homes told the council the city has roughly 2,800 lots in various stages of approval that currently lack guaranteed sewer capacity: he estimated about 960 lots effectively stopped due to health-department constraints, roughly 600 lots in an advanced approval stage without a finalized ADH clearance, and about 1,400 lots still in earlier planning stages.
Staff said the city will ask developers to submit approved plans to ADH, which could allow ADH to release permits on a conditional basis as upgrades proceed. Staff also said they will invite plant representatives to the next water-and-sewer commission meeting and will continue biweekly contact with the neighboring mayors and the plant operator to monitor progress.
Ending: The capacity constraint is a limiting factor for both residential subdivisions and larger commercial projects; city staff said they will return with updates as ADH permits and construction activity progress.
