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Council unanimously votes to remodel sewer plant

Voters will be asked to approve the debt
Operator Brian Scholz works at the city sewer plant in 2012. A decision by the Durango City Council Tuesday night will keep the plant at its current location near Santa Rita Park.

The sewer plant will stay in Santa Rita Park.

The Durango City Council unanimously approved, minutes before midnight on Tuesday, a resolution outlining the intent to remodel the sewer plant for about $58 million.

The decision comes a week before residents will receive ballots asking them to allow the city to spend $68 million on the plant and other sewer-system upgrades.

All the councilors, including Mayor Dean Brookie and Councilor Christina Rinderle who had hoped to move the plant early in the process, expressed their conviction it would be too burdensome on the city. Moving the plant could cost about $20 million more than a remodel, potentially lengthy negotiations to acquire sites, and the city would lose $10 million in infrastructure that already exists at Santa Rita Park.

“I’m kind of refocusing on what we can do to make the best situation of our current location,” Brookie said.

In addition to making it possible for the city to meet new regulations for phosphorous and nitrogen, the remodeled plant will have better odor control and more neutral design.

“You can do a lot with appearance and odors,” said Pat Mulhern, owner of Mulhern MRE who presented to the council.

The council had been waiting for additional information from Mulhern on an alternative site for the plant. This analysis was completed after an outcry from concerned citizens in September who felt the council had not done enough research into the options for moving the plant.

He presented some of the benefits, costs and limitations of the site.

The report estimated moving the plant onto a site near Sawmill Road would cost about $77 million.

It would also be a tight fit because the site sits in the floodplain, which would limit the amount of usable space that would be available if the plant needed to be expanded in the future, Mulhern said.

After learning the Jackson family is unwilling to sell their 5-acre parcel that would be part of the site, Mulhern assembled an alternative next to their property. However, this variation would require the city leave some of the most odor-producing parts of the plant at Santa Rita Park.

Before the board took up the vote, councilors took the opportunity to address lingering issues surrounding the plant.

Councilor Sweetie Marbury spoke to those who have floated the idea of voting down the bond issue because the city has decided not to move the plant.

The city needs to make the upgrades in order to meet state regulations for water quality, and if the city doesn’t take aggressive action to meet the regulations, the state could stop growth in the city.

“That’s job losses; that’s industry stopping,” she said.

Councilor Dick White also pointed out that the city is facing many other multimillion-dollar projects including proposals to upgrade the Durango-La Plata County Airport, the city’s building upgrades, a new water-treatment plant and stormwater treatment.

All of these projects are largely being paid for by the same people, White said.

“The $20 million here is much better saved for future needs,” he said.

While the council’s decision was final, some members of the public gathered Wednesday to question the city and some of the city’s consultants on the project.

Chris Wilbur, former chairman of the Durango Utilities Commission, asked if the plant would require more of Santa Rita Park in 30 years.

It is tough to say what the plant might require in the future, explained Patrick Radabaugh, a consultant with Dewberry Engineering. He said as technology improves, it likely will not require more land

During the anticipated remodel, the plant will take over the sand volleyball courts, said Steve Salka, director of utilities.

But the plant does have some space for additional water-treatment processes the state might require after the remodeled plant is complete, he said.

The state is expected to make water quality standards more strict in the future.

mshinn@durangoherald.com



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