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Lower Pottsgrove Authority reviews revised $20 million Porter Road wastewater plant plan and Borough CIP impacts
Summary
The authority reviewed a revised wastewater treatment-plant concept for Porter Road — now based on four SBR reactors and above-ground precast tanks — with an estimated cost just under $20 million; officials said operational costs and a 10-year cash-flow projection will be presented in July and that the township could exit its 25-year Borough contract if it builds a plant.
Fred Ebert, the authority’s engineer, presented a revised concept for a Porter Road wastewater treatment plant at the Lower Pottsgrove Township Authority meeting on June 9, 2025, telling board members the design now calls for four sequencing batch reactor basins rather than the previously proposed three.
Ebert said the plan uses precast, post-tensioned concrete tanks placed mostly above ground to reduce construction costs and that the overall capital estimate, including soft costs, is “just under $20 million.” He also described work on sludge processing incorporated into the revised design.
The change in process sizing and layout will affect both capital and operating costs. Board members discussed elements that will factor into future sanitary sewer bills — capital replacement, debt service and annual operating costs — and directed staff to prepare a 10-year cash-flow analysis. Ebert said he will present operational-cost estimates and a reduced-scale plant layout at the Authority’s July meeting.
The discussion included related capital projects in the Borough of Pottstown. Manager Edward C. Wagner summarized a Borough update that showed a $550,000 savings from purchasing a rebuilt belt filter press rather than a new unit, while the Borough’s UV disinfection system estimate rose by about $600,000 (from $2.65 million to $3.2 million) to treat 52 million gallons per day; the Borough expects the UV system to cut chlorine use and to lower chlorine costs by roughly $100,000 per year, with delivery scheduled for October 2025.
Board member Sean Pence asked whether Lower Pottsgrove could exit its 25-year contract with the Borough if it constructed its own wastewater plant; Wagner said the Authority would be able to do so if it moved ahead with building a treatment facility.
What happens next: Ebert will present operational costs and a smaller-scale layout at the July meeting, and the Authority indicated it will continue to refine cost estimates and the projected rate impacts before any formal decision about building a plant or leaving the Borough agreement.
