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Board recommends adoption of updated water and sewer service area plan; identifies future upsizing projects
Summary
The Utility Advisory Board recommended city council adopt an updated water and sewer service area plan; the study identifies sections of interceptor that may need upsizing and maps future water-system improvements needed to support growth and fire-flow demands.
The Utility Advisory Board recommended city council adopt an updated water and sewer service area plan the board approved Feb. 17. The plan, prepared by consultant Strand and reviewed by city staff, is required by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for long-range utility planning and to coordinate growth with sewer and water infrastructure.
Chris Bunch of the city’s engineering staff walked the board through the plan’s key elements: the sanitary service area (about 3,600 acres), the urban area boundary established in the 2023 comprehensive plan (about 14,200 acres) and a one-mile planning buffer (roughly 30,600 acres). The plan uses the comprehensive plan’s future land-use map to model projected flows and assigns recommended capital projects and timing based on those projections.
Sanitary-plan highlights include a set of 11 projects the consultant identified to address peak flows and future development. Two projects staff emphasized were a north Lehi interceptor project (identified as F2 in the study), and an existing 24-inch main shown as F5 that the study recommends upsize to 36 inches to reduce a bottleneck feeding the treatment plant. Several of the consultant’s projects are contingent on additional development within the designated urban area boundary.
On the water side, the plan identified recommended projects to boost fire flows and pressure stability, including a proposed north-zone well (roughly a 1,000 gallons-per-minute supply) and a proposed east-zone reservoir and booster upgrades to support future development and higher fire-flow demands. Staff noted that some water recommendations may be tied to growth timing while others (like a redundant north-zone supply) address resilience and fire-flow reliability.
Board members asked about coordination between utility projects and other planned work — for example the Kinney River corridor and street projects — and staff said they will pursue phased approaches and seek opportunities to combine trenching or river-crossing work where possible to reduce repeated disruption.
The UAB’s recommendation will go to the city council for final adoption. Staff said they will also remove outdated language referencing a Historical Sewer Service Area Technical Advisory Committee (which no longer exists) before the council packet is finalized.
Why this matters
The updated plan sets priorities and estimated costs for future upsizing and extensions needed to serve growth and to reduce infiltration and peak flows. It also forms the technical basis for impact-fee calculations, CIP scheduling and DNR review.
What’s next
The board’s recommendation moves the plan to city council. Staff and consultants will refine a few packet items (public-participation language) and will continue coordination on timing and project phasing with other public works projects and DNR reviewers.
