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Chief Operator Jonathon Weakley (right) and Operator Robert Cheney for Culpeper County Environmental Services talk with county civil/environmental engineer, Chris Hively (left), at the new water treatment plant.
A gauge measures a pump's water pressure at the plant.
The new water tank at the treatment plant is 150 feet tall and holds 750,000 gallons. |
No matter which way they turn, localities can't seem to escape the financial squeeze that invariably accompanies residential growth.
Three years ago, Culpeper County was struggling to provide additional services to new residents. Seeing no end in sight to growth, officials upgraded county infrastructure and counted on projected tax revenues to pay for the work.
Now, the growth has stopped and Culpeper, like many localities, finds those new facilities--such as two new schools scheduled to open this fall--draining a dwindling pool of revenue.
Add a new sewage-treatment plant to that list.
Three years ago, the Centex Corp. agreed to pay $17 million to build a water plant and sewage-treatment plant along the Rappahannock River in exchange for favorable zoning for its Clevenger's Village project in the northern part of the county. The facility would be owned and operated by the county.
Trying to cover all its bases, the county put a clause in its contract with Centex that held the national construction company liable for any operating losses the plant might incur in its first two years of operation. It was felt that after that time, the new homes Centex planned to build would at least allow the county to break even.
But that contract was written in a vastly different economy than exists today. Three years later, Centex has not built the first house on the 1,700-acre tract near Jeffersonton.
The company honored its funding commitment, however, and the county has built both a water plant and a state-of-the-art sewage treatment plant on the site.
The water plant--which draws from five deep wells--is being tested this week and could be ready to go online within days, according to county Environmental Services Director P.J. Howard.
It will not, however.
"We're going to wait until the sewage-treatment plant is ready in September," Howard said.
When that happens, the clock will start ticking toward what could become a major yearly expense for the county starting in 2010.
"We figure we could lose half a million dollars a year operating that plant [if Centex and three other neighboring subdivisions don't build]," Howard said.
pressing needs
So why even bring the Clevenger's Village sewage treatment plant online before the housing market returns? There are two reasons.
First, the 343 existing homes in the South Wales subdivision need the service.
Those customers are currently hooked to a 75,000-gallon-per-day antiquated treatment facility that has been a source of problems for the past decade. When the new 900,000-gallon-per-day plant begins operation, the old one will be destroyed.
Second, Culpeper County has been allocated coveted sewage-treatment capacity by the state and must use it or lose it.
It was the sewage-treatment plant that proved key in supervisors voting 4-3 to approve Centex's rezoning request. The county had long wanted to get into the sewage business and, with Centex footing the bill, this seemed like the perfect opportunity.
Under the plan, Centex paid to have the plant built and would get hookups free for Clevenger's Village's expected 750 houses and assorted businesses. The customers from that development and three subdivisions planned nearby would then pay monthly charges for water and sewer use.
The 600 homes in the three nearby developments would also pay hookup fees of $25,000 each, adding an additional $15 million to the operating and maintenance pot.
who will use it?
In the present housing climate, it is unclear when Centex or the owners of the other three large parcels will build. Centex has done very little site work and the company faces no county timetable.
Culpeper, however, must get the sewage-treatment plant operating to fulfill its obligation to South Wales and protect its state-allocated capacity.
"We think it will cost us between $600,000 and $900,000 a year to operate those plants," said Howard.
The utility bills of 343 homes--which do not have to pay hookup fees--at South Wales will not come close to balancing the plant's budget.
So, unless the housing market picks up dramatically during the next two years, Culpeper County may be operating a sewage-treatment plant that is $500,000 in the red annually.
Donnie Johnston:
Email: djohnston@freelancestar.com
| THE PLAN: During the height of the development boom, Culpeper officials worked out a deal with Centex Corp. to build new water and sewage-treatment plants to meet expected growth in the northern end of the county. THE REALITY: The plants are almost ready to go online, but the market slump has resulted in fewer new homes to be served. WHAT IT MEANS: Without more customers to pay hookup fees and monthly bills, the county could lose $500,000 a year operating the plant starting in 2010. |
