LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Charlestown officials prepared for future growth around the city on Tuesday and broke ground on a new water reclamation facility.
The new plant, which is just south of the existing plant, will convert wastewater into water that can be used for other purposes like farming or industry.
Grants and special funding will help pay for a majority of the project, which the mayor said is necessary for the future.
“From the beginning, I have aggressively pursued special funding and grants to pay for the new plant,” Mayor Treva Hodges said. “A rate analysis by the city’s financial advisors showed a potentially disastrous rate impact if we had financed the full construction cost. Knowing that for every $5 million in funding I could secure it would save ratepayers $15 a month in future increases, I’m overjoyed by the successful attainment of grants that allowed us to avoid new rate increases for our residents.”
The city hopes to have the plant running by the end of 2025.
"If you don't have adequate infrastructure in place, then you will not grow smartly," Hodges said. "We want to make sure that our growth is happening smoothly, with little impact on our existing residents, and to make sure we are prepared for all of the industrial, manufacturing, commercial, retail, and residential opportunities that are coming our way."
According to a news release, the current plant can handle about 2.2 million gallons per day; the new plant will 4 million gallons per day, and can be expanded to handle as much as 8 million gallons per day. While most of the old plant will be demolished, some of it will be transformed to help the new plant.
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