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Delta 3: Bloomington wastewater plant needs multi-year upgrades; board to seek grants
Summary
A Delta 3 evaluation found the 1983 wastewater plant operating at roughly 57% of design flow but unable to meet newer DNR limits on ammonia, E. coli, PFAS and phosphorus without upgrades. The firm recommended equipment replacements, UV conversion, and a multi-year grant/loan timeline; the board accepted the report and will pursue funding.
Delta 3 engineer Jordan Fure told the Village Board on Nov. 3 that Bloomington’s wastewater treatment facility, installed in 1983, operates at about 57% of its design flow but faces modern regulatory challenges that exceed the plant’s original design.
Fure listed equipment and compliance issues: an obsolete motor control center with hard-to-find parts; a high-wear comminutor; a generator that now powers only one blower and is at the end of its useful life; a chlorine disinfection system that requires hazardous chemical dosing; a sludge storage tank located in the floodplain and in poor condition; and blowers that consume significant energy. He recommended replacing the MCC with variable frequency drives, installing mechanical screening and an automatic bagger at the headworks, switching from chlorine to UV disinfection, constructing a new sludge storage tank outside the floodplain, replacing blowers with sound enclosures, and adding a dissolved-oxygen probe to regulate blower operation.
The evaluation sets a multi-year timeline: final report to be submitted in December 2025, a facility plan in 2026, design and grant application work in 2027, and likely construction in 2028–2029. Fure said the village will receive a $5,000 reimbursement through the Focus on Energy program for the evaluation, and Delta 3 will return in February 2026 to discuss priorities and cost estimates for the facility plan.
Board discussion touched on whether to move village offices to the wastewater site as part of larger project planning; Clerk Atterbury said co-locating village staff and police could be more efficient but members expressed concerns about space and parking. The board did not decide on relocation; Delta 3 will provide follow-up cost and priority information.
McLimans said the village will pursue grants and low-interest DNR loan options; Delta 3 anticipates preliminary grant information by February and full applications by June. The board did not vote on construction funding at this meeting but accepted the evaluation and asked staff and consultants to prepare next steps.
