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McLendon‑Chisholm adopts wastewater master plan, consultant recommends developer‑funded upgrades
Summary
The council unanimously adopted a wastewater master plan after a presentation by Freeman Milliken showing current capacity limits and recommending a developer-funded force-main and lift‑station approach to serve planned developments.
The McLendon‑Chisholm City Council on Jan. 13 unanimously adopted a wastewater master plan that city staff and consultant Freeman Milliken said will allow the city to serve planned subdivisions while relying on developer funding for major construction.
City staff moved to adopt the resolution and Freeman Milliken engineer Mike McKeska presented the firm’s findings, saying the existing system currently serves about 1,095 connections and that approved and planned growth could bring as many as 4,567 homes into the system. McKeska said measured flow data in Sonoma Verde showed a peaking factor near 3.1 and that design work targeted a peak pumping capacity in the lift‑station/force‑main network of about 2,721 gallons per minute.
“We think Alternate 1 is the best way to go,” McKeska said. He described the recommendation as building a parallel 8‑inch force main from the Sonoma Verde lift station toward City Hall, tying those mains into a 12‑inch gravity main and adding a smaller lift station to serve Willow Creek and Legacy. He added, “All of this cost is on the developer.”
Residents who spoke during public comment raised concerns about mandatory connections. Rhonda said she did not want homeowners on septic “forced to… have my waste go out to the line and pay you all that,” and Elaine Reynolds said she supports sewer service only if developers pay for their portions and citizens are not left to subsidize new construction.
Fabrice, the city staff lead on the project, and the consultant described existing developer agreements that require connection fees; those fees in some cases are structured to reimburse developer investments. The council emphasized that the recommended plan would be implemented in coordination with developers and was intended to align with the city’s 2021 comprehensive plan.
Councilmembers asked for a clear number on the maximum homes the current system can support; McKeska indicated there is additional capacity in the two force mains and that roughly 2,800 homes could be served from the Sonoma Verde lift station plus a new Willow Creek lift station (excluding Horizon Lakes’ separate force‑main connections). He offered to provide a more exact capacity figure to council staff after the meeting.
The council adopted the resolution after discussion and a motion; the vote was recorded as unanimous.
