Thursday, September 5, 2024–7:35 p.m.
-David Crowder, WRGA News-
The location of a new reverse osmosis water treatment facility remains in question, as city commissioners who are opposed to the proposed Riverside Parkway location are expressing an interest in the site of the current Hamler treatment facility on Blossom Hill. Meanwhile, it appears as though the public works site on Vaughan Road is out.
During last month’s Rome Water and Sewer Committee meeting, a recommendation supported by Commissioners Randy Quick and Jim Bojo was forwarded to the full Rome City Commission to proceed with construction on Riverside Parkway at a cost not to exceed $200 million. However, a vote was not taken by the full commission and the issue was back before the committee on Thursday.
In January of 2023, the city commission unanimously approved the purchase of 47 acres on Riverside Parkway for $400,000 with the understanding it could be used for the new treatment facility.
In March of 2023, the Rome City Commission unanimously approved a contract with Archer Western Construction LLC to develop construction documents associated with Phase 1 of the project. Since then, close to $3 million has been spent on engineering work at the Riverside Parkway site.
Settlement funds from a lawsuit filed by the city against carpet manufacturers, chemical companies, and others that will pay for the new facility that will remove PFAS and other chemicals from the local water supply. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances are widely used to make carpets and other items stain-resistant. The chemicals have been linked to numerous adverse health impacts.
In January, during a retreat, the city commission decided to tap the brakes on the project to reevaluate the location. The project has been idle since then. A deadline of April of 2029 looms for water systems to come into compliance with new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines, which are essentially zero tolerance for PFAS.
“It feels like Groundhog Day because we keep wrestling with this,” said Rome City Manager Sammy Rich. “The reality is, until you commissioners tell us where to go, we are still in this awkward dance.”
The issue with the public works site is a former municipal landfill.
During a long, and sometimes heated discussion during Thursday’s meeting, Bryan Pate with InSite Engineering said that the cost to excavate the landfill could run anywhere from $14.8 million on the low end to 55.6 million on the high end. That does not count any unanticipated costs. In addition, there are the optics of having a water treatment plant located on a former landfill site.
The committee was then presented preliminary numbers regarding the cost of using the current Blossom Hill site. Those figures run anywhere from $153 million to $199 million. However, there are risks involved in doing construction at the 90-year-old facility. For instance, hitting a pipe while digging could result in a loss of service since Rome has no backup. In addition, there would be little room to expand in the future. Another concern would be the timetable for meeting the deadline since it would have to be a phased construction.
Commissioner Wayne Robinson opposes the Riverside Parkway site and has previously stated a better use for the property would be private development. He wanted to know what would happen should Rome fail to meet the deadline.
“Where are all these other communities?” he asked. “They haven’t even started yet. Where’s their deadline? Let’s say we don’t meet the deadline in 2029, are they going to issue us a letter saying we’re not compliant?”
Water and Sewer Division Director John Boyd told Robinson that those communities would be in violation.
“Those other communities will be issued violations and they are going to be behind the eight ball,” he said. “Do we want to be the community that gets that letter of violation after we were awarded litigation funds last year, and still not meet the deadline?”
Commissioner Bill Collins, who serves on the committee, wanted to proceed with getting estimates for the Blossom Hill location.
Bojo and Quick still support the Riverside Parkway location.
“Riverside doesn’t have five [commission] votes,” said Commissioner Mark Cochran, who attended the meeting. “Do what you will with that information.”