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Council approves amended CCUC agreement for Great Wagon Road lift station; attorney explains limits on annexation
Summary
The council unanimously approved an amendment to a 2023 interlocal agreement with the Winston‑Salem Forsyth County Utilities Commission to update project costs for a planned lift station that will serve about 400 acres in its basin; the council discussed capacity, voluntary annexation limits and rate‑setting mechanics.
The Town Council voted unanimously to approve an amendment to the 2023 interlocal agreement with the Winston‑Salem Forsyth County Utilities Commission (CCUC) that updates the cost figures for a planned sewer lift station intended to serve the Great Wagon Road gateway area.
Town Attorney Al Andrews and staff briefed the council on technical and legal points the town sought to clarify before acting. The engineering analysis used by CCUC and its consultant identified a basin of roughly 400 acres that the new lift station would serve; staff said about 300 acres currently lie inside Lewisville’s corporate limits and roughly 100 acres are outside the town boundary, with an estimated roughly 40 acres of excess basin capacity available without additional pumping capacity or relocation.
Andrews explained that CCUC is a rate‑setting authority and does not have power to compel annexation. “They are not able to...compel or provide annexation,” he said, describing the limits of the utility’s authority and noting that annexation would remain voluntary under state law; customers that tap into the station would pay the prevailing Lewisville rate determined by CCUC and a portion of those rates would flow into a capital reserve account that can recoup the town’s investment over time.
Council members pressed staff on capacity, long‑term replacement risk for mechanical infrastructure, the effect of inflation on project costs, and the potential legal exposure if work were delayed and bids became obsolete. Staff said the station’s size and basin selection date from earlier engineering work and that cost increases are driven largely by inflation and market changes since initial estimates.
Council approved the amendment after discussion; staff noted the town has already invested in engineering and design and that delaying the project could increase costs and risk obligating the town to unrecoverable expenses. The amended agreement preserves the town’s path to recover a share of the investment through CCUC’s rate structure as properties outside town limits choose to connect.
