Utility leaders outline $8.3M in sewer investments, moratorium costs and a $3M grant bid for power automation

Jason (utility presenter) summarized the city’s recent utility activity and capital spending, saying the power system grew by about 1.8% in the calendar year and that the power service counted roughly 11,957 meters.

He told the room that the sewer system saw approximately $8.3 million in investment during the past year, much of it from grants and state appropriations. Jason said a Hurricane Creek sewer rehab has expended about $750,000 so far and is expected to total roughly $3.2 million. He said the city closed a pump-station project funded by a $1 million site-development grant and other local matches, with the project totaling about $2 million.

On funding for constrained areas, Jason said the sewer moratorium area will likely require on the order of $6 million for the design and construction work to lift capacity restrictions; staff are exploring bond financing and awaiting more favorable interest rates. He said the city is also pursuing grants and has used ARPA and state funds on recent projects.

On the power side, Jason said staff applied last week for a $3 million grant intended to cover most of a roughly $4 million distribution automation upgrade. He described a prior pilot that isolated main feeds at three substations and said the full automation would reduce the number of customers affected by single outages. Jason warned the upgrade is costly but would improve resiliency.

Next steps: staff will continue grant and bond work and return with cost estimates and project timelines as funding is refined.