Salina's Downtown Water Plant Faces Estimated $58 Million Upgrade

The Salina City Commission received an update Sept. 28 on a study of the city's downtown water treatment plant, with early figures pointing to an estimated $58 million project to upgrade the facility.

Utilities Director Martha Tasker said the city recently received a draft document of about 373 pages from engineering firm Black & Veatch evaluating the plant, which has a capacity of about 20 million gallons a day and uses both surface water and groundwater. She said the plant has been at the same downtown location for about a century and has not had major upgrades since about 2000.

Tasker said the study examines whether the plant meets regulatory requirements and assesses its equipment, with the goal of an upgrade that would last 20 or more years. She said the report remains in draft form because staff have not yet reviewed all of it, and that Black & Veatch would later present its findings to the commission.

Staff estimated design could be completed around the first quarter of 2028, with construction carrying through about 2030. Commissioners noted the project would come as debt on other water projects, including an $18 million obligation expiring in 2031, begins to roll off. Staff said the downtown water plant project has been accounted for in the utility's rate projections.