Part One – Expensive, controversial project has a long history
“We’re Finally Here”
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When it became clear Webster City had to replace or substantially upgrade its wastewater treatment plant in 2016, nobody thought it would take 10 years to get the project started.
Certainly not Mayor John Hawkins, the only member of today's City Council of Webster City who was also serving then. "We're finally here," he said minutes before Council voted unanimously to approve $31,881,680 for the plant's construction.
Project has a Long History
An early estimate suggested the present waste water plant could be upgraded at a cost of approximately $30,000,000. After the 2013 passage of Iowa's nutrient reduction strategy, though, with its stricter nitrate and phosphate removal standards, both city staff and Council didn't believe a rebuilt plant was up to the task.
The largest industrial wastewater users; Mary Ann's Specialty Foods, Webster City Custom Meats, and Vero Blue all planned to grow in the future, which necessitated building a plant with higher capacity. To ensure there would be enough wastewater capacity to meet demand 20 years into the future, the city used a high population growth scenario to calculate the plant's optimal capacity. Both of these factors increased the size and cost of the facility.
In August, 2022, Bolton & Menk, the engineering consultants on the project at that time, presented a plan with a cost estimated at $78.4 million, more than twice as expensive as previous estimates. City Council, having put the project off for a variety of reasons, was concerned any further delay would make a bad situation worse. Accordingly, they approved Bolton & Menk's plans.
The new plant was to be built along the Boone River on the east side of Gateway Industrial Park. It called for pumping raw sewage 1.5 miles, from the present plant, uphill, via two, 18-inch pipelines, where it would be processed in a facility of seven separate buildings.
Citizens and business people began wondering how long it would take to pay off the new plant, and whether the resulting wastewater rates from the new plant would be so high they might jeopardize population and economic growth.
Reconsidering the Plan
One of the first things John Harrenstein did in January, 2024, after being named interim city manager, was to study the project's design and costs. "It was clear the capital cost and resulting wastewater rates would be a heavy burden," he said recently. He then ordered a thorough review of the project, which included the possibility of upgrading some of the existing facilities to reduce the plant's overall cost.
To guarantee a fresh look at the wastewater plant's design, Harrenstein, the City Council and city staff, turned to Snyder & Associates, an engineering consultant it has used widely for large projects, especially street paving.
In the spring of 2024, Snyder assigned Darren Jacobs, P.E. to oversee design work on the Webster City wastewater project. Jacobs' title is water resources group leader. He brings 25 years experience on water treatment, storage and distribution projects, including a number of rebuilt, enlarged and new wastewater plants across the Midwest. Since then, Jacobs, Harrenstein and Nick Knowles, Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant Supervisor for Webster City, have met at least once weekly, to advance the design and cost estimates of the project.
In May, 2023, a value engineering study by Snyder & Associates showed the existing plant could be rebuilt on-site for something in between $30-40 million, and importantly, could confidently meet the state's stricter nutrient reduction standards. Harrenstein instructed the team that $30 million was the project's official cost target.
In today's inflationary economy, and in view of the disruptions in recent years, to both the cost and availability of many construction materials, it was unlikely a $30 million dollar project in 2016 that ballooned to almost $80 million in 2022, had a chance of being built for the present figure of just under $32 million.
Tomorrow, In Part Two - Building the New Wastewater Treatment Plant