After years of serious discussions, there was a celebratory atmosphere after the Western Wayne Regional Sewage District unanimously voted Monday night to build the larger local wastewater treatment plant option discussed, provided all final negotiations are successfully completed.
Wayne County officials had encouraged the sewage district to build a new plant that could treat 1.8 million gallons of wastewater per day to meet the needs of current and future industrial and residential customers, and the county recently raised its offer to donate $1 million toward a current lift station construction project if the sewage district would meet a few conditions.
However, sewer district board members were reluctant to commit to a larger plant if they did not have a commitment from SugarCreek Packing Co., the sewage district’s largest customer, to treat its wastewater.
Ron Holbrook, Sugarcreek’s local plant manager, said Monday that after in-depth analysis of data and financial calculations, the company’s owner would like to enter a long-term agreement with the district for wastewater treatment, provided the final details can be worked out.
Dan Worl, president of the sewage board, said he believes the negotiations between SugarCreek and WWRSD and those between WWRSD and the county are being finalized in good faith, and final details will be resolved soon.
Read more of this story in the Nov. 27 edition of Western Wayne News.
-By Millicent Martin Emery