How to Keep Your Wastewater CIP from Being Flushed – The Intersection of Master Planning and Business Planning

The City of Huntsville, Texas (City) owns and maintains an aging wastewater system dating back to the 1930’s that includes three wastewater treatment plants and 26 lift stations, many of which are nearing the end of their design life. The aging collection system also contains a large percentage of clay tile gravity sewer lines and experiences high levels of inflow and infiltration. The Freese and Nichols, Inc. (FNI) project team and City staff evaluated the condition and capacity of the wastewater system through a holistic approach to a wastewater master plan. This project incorporated frequent communication with City staff at all levels: operations, engineering, public works, and management. The healthy, frequent communication and multiple analysis methods utilized on this project helped to build a convincing business case for the wastewater system CIP and the expenditure of the City’s dollars. The audience will walk away with ideas about how to intersect master planning with business planning to develop a defendable and implementable wastewater capital improvements plan.