City Officials Detail $23 Million Water Plant Rehabilitation Plan at Town Hall Meeting

City officials and engineers spent more than an hour Tuesday evening explaining why they believe extending Blackwell's existing 1.5-cent sales tax is the most practical and affordable way to fund critical upgrades to the city's aging water treatment plant.

The meeting, held at Blackwell City Hall, was the first of two planned town hall meetings ahead of the June 16 election, where residents will decide whether to extend the current sales tax from its scheduled expiration date of Sept. 30, 2030, through June 30, 2041.

City Manager Jerry Wieland and Cimarron Engineering's Matthew Coe presented an overview of the city's water infrastructure needs, ongoing rehabilitation projects, and the financial realities facing communities attempting to maintain aging utility systems.

Coe told attendees that Blackwell's water treatment plant was originally constructed in 1927 and is approaching its 100th year of service.

While portions of the facility have been upgraded over the decades, much of the infrastructure remains decades old.

"This water treatment plant is almost 100 years old," Coe said. "There have been upgrades over the years, but there was still a lot of antiquated equipment and aging infrastructure that needed attention."

Rather than constructing an entirely new treatment plant, city officials and engineers opted for a rehabilitation approach that utilizes existing structures while replacing outdated equipment and treatment systems.

According to Coe, inflation and construction costs have dramatically changed the economics of water treatment projects in recent years.

He noted that similar new water treatment plants recently bid in Oklahoma communities have cost between $36 million and $40 million.

"At the end of the day, we're essentially building a new plant inside an old plant," Coe said. "The difference is the amount of money it takes to do it."

Since beginning the rehabilitation effort, the city has completed or initiated approximately $9 million in water treatment improvements.

Projects have included upgrades to electrical systems, replacement of transfer pumps, rehabilitation of storage tanks, installation of backup generators, modernization of treatment controls and improvements to sedimentation basins and lime treatment systems.

Coe said the city has secured approximately $2.5 million in grants to offset project costs.

Among the improvements already completed are rehabilitation of the city's 2.5 million-gallon finished water storage tanks, installation of new transfer pumps, replacement of aging electrical infrastructure and the addition of aeration systems designed to reduce disinfection byproducts.

The city also recently upgraded its backup power capabilities to ensure water service can continue during prolonged power outages.

"We've touched nearly every part of the plant except the filters and solids handling systems," Coe said.

Despite recent investments, city officials said several critical portions of the treatment process remain outdated.

The plant's filtration system includes components dating back to the 1920s and 1950s, and Coe presented photographs showing deteriorating piping, aging valves and equipment that no longer meets current Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality standards.

Among the deficiencies identified by regulators are inadequate filter backwash systems, lack of filter-to-waste capabilities, aging monitoring equipment and flooding issues within portions of the filter gallery.

Future phases of the project would include replacement of the city's aging filters, upgrades to solids handling equipment, improvements to chemical feed systems and modernization of residual waste management processes.

According to Coe, the remaining projects account for approximately $14 million of the overall rehabilitation effort.

Wieland used part of the presentation to explain the history of Blackwell's existing 1.5-cent sales tax and how the revenue has been used over the last quarter-century.

The tax was first approved by voters in 1999 to fund capital improvement projects throughout the city. In 2005, voters approved Ordinance No. 2753, extending the tax through September 2030 while expanding its use to include water, sewer and electrical infrastructure projects.

Since then, the sales tax has funded numerous improvements across Blackwell.

Projects supported by the tax have included the municipal swimming pool, athletic facilities, parks and recreational amenities, as well as major investments in water, sewer and electrical infrastructure.

Wieland highlighted several examples during the presentation.

In 2006, approximately $7.7 million was invested in water system improvements, including upgrades to the city's carbon dioxide treatment systems and rehabilitation of a 1.5-million-gallon water storage tank. The tax also helped fund improvements at the Braum’s sewer lift station and related sewer infrastructure.

In 2008, roughly $2.3 million was spent on electrical system conversions and water improvements serving portions of west Blackwell.

One of the largest projects funded through the tax occurred in 2012 when the city completed the Coolidge Street reconstruction project. The approximately $5 million project included roadway reconstruction, drainage improvements and the replacement of approximately 4.5 miles of aging water line.

In recent years, city crews have continued replacing infrastructure throughout the community. Coe noted that Blackwell's Public Works Department has installed approximately five miles of new water line over the past five years using city labor, reducing costs that otherwise would have required outside contractors.

Wieland acknowledged that infrastructure investments often go unnoticed because much of the work occurs underground.

"There's nothing fancy about infrastructure," Wieland said. "I can replace every water line, sewer line, electric pole and electric line in town and most people wouldn't even know because it's either underground or it's something you drive by every day. But it's infrastructure that we have to have."

Wieland said city leaders inherited many of the infrastructure challenges now facing the community but emphasized that their responsibility is to address them rather than dwell on past decisions.

"When I took this job five years ago, I often found myself asking, 'How did we get here?'" Wieland said. "I've come to the realization that it doesn't matter how we got here. It's our job to move it forward. It's our job to fix it."

He argued that maintaining reliable water, sewer and electrical systems represents one of local government's most important responsibilities.

"If one of three things fail, the government has failed this town," Wieland said. "That's sewer, water and electric."

Officials estimate the entire rehabilitation effort will cost approximately $23 million once completed — significantly less than the estimated $40 million cost of constructing a new treatment plant from scratch.

According to Coe, once all planned projects are completed, the rehabilitated facility will include the same major treatment processes and capabilities found in a modern water treatment plant, including upgraded filtration, chemical treatment, residual handling, electrical systems, controls and storage facilities.

Residents will have another opportunity to learn about the proposal during a second town hall meeting scheduled for 6 p.m. June 10 at Blackwell City Hall.

Tours of the water treatment plant are also available by appointment through City Hall.

Blackwell voters will decide the fate of the proposed sales tax extension during the June 16 election.