Chattanooga wastewater projects on track: wet‑weather storage tanks more than halfway built

City wastewater officials told the Industrial Development Board the E2I2 wet‑weather storage facility is progressing well and the Class A Power Project at the treatment plant is moving into design.

“...we've got the 2 projects ... the E2I2 wet weather storage facility project. That project is progressing well. We are a little over halfway done with it now,” said Mark Heinser, administrator for the wastewater department, describing tanks visible near the I‑75/I‑24 split that will reduce sanitary sewer overflows during wet weather events.

Why it matters: The E2I2 tanks are intended to reduce sanitary sewer overflows during heavy storms; the board noted the project’s construction budget is substantial and asked staff to track local contractor participation and local hiring on the $153,000,000 program.

Status and schedule: Heinser said the storage project is on budget and schedule and reported a completion figure of about 55.74% for the tanks. The Class A Power Project at the plant recently completed a basis of design report and remains in design; staff said the design portion is about 25% complete and that the alternatives analysis took longer than expected but left the project within the overall time frame.

Board questions and procurement concerns: Board members asked how much of the $153 million had been awarded to local contractors; Heinser did not have a breakdown at the meeting and said staff would try to provide that information. Other members observed that concrete and local supplier activity appear to be substantial on-site.

Next steps: Staff will provide a follow-up quantification of local contracting and worker participation and continue to report progress to the board as construction phases proceed.