This project summary first appeared in the Spring 2025 KCED Newsletter published on Wednesday, April 2nd. The full newsletter can be found here.
Investing in Local Water Resource Infrastructure Projects
In 2024, two cities and Kandiyohi County received funding for water resource infrastructure projects from the State of Minnesota Public Facilities Authority.
Kandiyohi County: Received by the county for Glacial Lakes Sanitary Sewer and Water District (GLSSWD)
Waste Water Treatment Facility Rehab (Phase 2) provided to GLSSWD
$6,901,809 – Point Source Implementation-Grant
$15,461,096 – Clean Water SRF-Loan
Total = $22,362,905
Phase 1 of the pretreatment facility equipment project was successfully completed in October 2021. This phase included the installation of new grit separators and screens at the water treatment facility. GLSSWD Director, Corey Smith, highlighted the importance of the pretreatment facility, noting, “The pretreatment facility gets hit pretty hard. It removes all the grit and protects the pumps in the treatment facility. Built in 2000, the equipment’s shelf life had reached its maximum. “
The recently funded Phase 2 focuses on upgrading the remaining equipment in the wastewater treatment plant. As Smith explained, this phase is crucial for meeting updated requirements of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), including stricter phosphorus limits. This phase also requires the installation of additional storage tanks for biosolids, while updating “the rest of the equipment at the wastewater treatment plant.”
The project design was finalized in September 2022, with the Notice to Proceed and contract approval granted by the county board of commissioners in April 2024. The project is expected to reach substantial completion by December 2025, with full completion scheduled for March 2026.