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Water and wastewater projects, staff additions proposed in Meridian's FY26 enterprise requests
Summary
City utility staff asked council to approve enterprise fund requests including safety studies, three water/wastewater operator positions, tertiary filtration completion, lift‑station work and other capital items; some requests are offset by reimbursements or grant funding.
City utility staff presented a slate of enterprise fund requests tied to water and wastewater operations and capital projects during the FY26 budget workshop.
Lorelei (water/wastewater presenter) summarized the water requests: an arc‑flash electrical safety study that is performed every five years, an additional water operator position plus vehicle to support meter services, ongoing coordinated water and sewer main work performed alongside roadway projects, and the final year of Well 24 water treatment installations. She said the city now has about 47,000 meters and that meter replacement is on a roughly 20‑year cycle.
On wastewater, staff requested two new operations/maintenance positions (a mechanic 2 and an operator) to support major plant upgrades and permit compliance. Staff described large, near‑term capital work already under way: Canada lift station final construction (a multi‑year project with reimbursement agreements), planned pump upgrades for Oaks and South Black Cat lift stations, and the final year of the tertiary filtration project that staff said is required under the facility's permit and expected to be completed in FY26.
"This project retrofits our old aeration basins at the plant and constructs two new aeration basins," the wastewater presenter said of the aeration basins project, noting permit deadlines associated with the 2027 permit limits.
Other enterprise items included requests to buy adjacent land for future plant buffering and expansion, add about 39 parking spaces at the wastewater plant to address a shortfall on large‑attendance days, and underground remaining power lines serving the plant to improve reliability. Staff noted one lift‑station pump upgrade is expected to be net zero cost to the city under a reimbursement agreement.
Why it matters: many of the requests are tied to permit obligations, system capacity and safety. Council members asked clarifying questions about staffing levels, how the new positions would allow the plant to meet 24/7 permit requirements, and the status of grant or reimbursement offsets for the major capital projects.
Next steps: staff said enterprise fund revenues support capital and replacement needs and proposed using $2.8 million of enterprise fund balance as part of FY26. Council signaled a need for a forthcoming rate analysis; staff said a small rate adjustment (under 3% per year in typical scenarios) will likely be proposed in a separate enterprise rate presentation to preserve fund solvency and pay for ongoing operating and replacement costs.
