5 days ago
Contract awarded to expand water plant in Anderson
ANDERSON — A contract for expansion of the Lafayette water treatment plant has been approved by the Anderson Board of Public Works.
The board on Tuesday awarded a contract in the amount of $6,016,000 to Patterson Horth to expand the water treatment plant from a capacity of 10 million gallons per day to 14 million.
The engineer's estimate on the work was $6.5 million.
Work is expected to start in August, according to Neal McKee, superintendent of the water department.
The expansion of the plant is expected to be completed in one year.
The city is planning to issue $130 million in bonds over the next three years to upgrade the water system.
The council has already approved $9 million in American Rescue Plan funds, and the Anderson Redevelopment Commission is providing $19 million toward the project.
All the work is scheduled to be completed by September 2029, with the initial phase starting this year.
Included in the first bond is the beginning of a process to replace lead service lines in several neighborhoods and at scattered sites. It also includes the development of two new wells north of the city that will involve a new line to the Lafayette treatment plant and a new transmission line from Cross Street to the water tank on Eighth Street.
The Anderson City Council has approved a rate increase for the water department. The increase is pending before the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission.
The last water rate increase was approved by the state in 2015.
If approved, the monthly rate for an average residential customer is expected to increase from $23.51 to $55.25 starting in 2029.
Large customers of the water utility will see an increase from an average of $117,772 monthly to an average of $434,171 starting in 2029.
A second bond, to be issued in 2026, will be used to open a new well field and treatment plant in south Anderson and close the 75-year-old Wheeler treatment plant.
The final bond issue in 2027 will be used to replace lead pipes in the remaining areas of Anderson.
