Centerton council backs sewer commission to begin talks with NWA as study shows no easy short-term fix

City consultants told the Centerton City Council on April 14 that available options to address wastewater constraints each carry significant cost or timeline impacts, and council voted to empower the city's sewer commission to pursue negotiations and route planning with the Northwest Arkansas (NWA) wastewater authority.

Consultant Aaron Benzing of Hopkins Weir told council the study identified three practical paths: continue sending most flow to Decatur (status quo), build a Centerton treatment facility, or build a pipeline to NWA and split flow between partners. "With no exception ... sewer rates in Centerton are going to have to go up," Benzing said, summarizing the financial reality behind each option.

Benzing said staying with Decatur would likely require a long timeline for additional Decatur expansions (an estimated decade-scale horizon to fully match Centerton growth), while building a local treatment plant would take an estimated seven or more years and face stringent permit limits and high construction cost. The pipeline-to-NWA option also requires time and easement work but could provide a more immediate capacity pathway if negotiated and built.

Council members pressed staff about specific constraints identified in the study: two collection-system "pinch-point" interceptor projects that would help free capacity but could cost in the low tens of millions; pending Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) and ADEQ approvals; and differing flow-assumption methodologies (the study used a 65-gallons-per-day projection rather than the 100 gpd metric used in some state guidance). Staff said Decatur is expected to reach a 5.36 MGD capacity that would clear the current waiting list, but growth beyond that point would require additional infrastructure.

After discussion, Councilmember Wendy moved and Cody seconded a motion supporting the sewer commission to begin route studies, easement planning and negotiations with NWA; the motion passed on a council vote. Councilors asked the commission to return with more detailed financial figures and timelines, targeting a fuller update in September when rate and connection-cost information from partner agencies is expected to be available.

The council's action authorizes early planning steps (route feasibility, easement identification and preliminary negotiations) but does not commit the city to a final construction decision or to specific financing. Staff emphasized the next steps will focus on gathering missing financial data and evaluating phased options that balance near-term relief with long-term reliability.