STATUS OF THE TOWN OF CONSTANTIA SEWAGE TREATMENT PROJECT

May 15, 2024

In 2019, the Town of Constantia entered an intermunicipal agreement with the Village of Cleveland to treat sewage generated from the Town’s sewer district (between 900-1100 homes) in exchange for upgrades to their treatment plant and other considerations. At the time of the intermunicipal agreement (IMA), the estimated cost of the project was about 32 million dollars. Today the estimated cost of the project is near 72 million dollars, essentially doubling in the last 5 years due to general inflation and cost increases in materials and labor. Despite the increasing costs of the project, the Town Board was (and is) committed to actively seeking additional funding that would keep sewage treatment affordable to the residents of the district.

On April 26, 2024, the Village of Cleveland terminated this Intermunicipal Agreement; this action essentially changed the project as it is currently known to the public. Efforts in project planning and design of the Cleveland treatment plant and funding obtained and funding applied for is now obsolete because the project was significantly changed with the termination of the IMA and the loss of the treatment plant to the project. However, much of the design on the project’s sewage collection system is salvageable and can be used in future district efforts.

Sewage treatment in the Town of Constantia must now be re-imagined. The Town Board is eager to move forward and has established a sewer committee composed of interested parties and elected officials from within the Town. The first efforts of this group will be to identify and evaluate new locations for a future treatment plant that will utilize much of the design work that is currently completed. Keeping the community informed and understanding your thoughts regarding this project is extremely important; voice your opinions at sewer committee and Town board meetings. Please be assured that the Town Board will continue to search for and examine affordable possibilities for sewage treatment within the district.