MOUNT VERNON — Progress is continuing at Mount Vernon’s wastewater treatment plant on Cougar Drive. Ground was broken in February 2011 with numerous electrical and other plant upgrades in the works which are planned to be completed in September 2012.
A progress meeting with Mount Vernon City Engineer Cameron Keaton took place Thursday morning along with plant operations staff, engineering firm representatives and contractors who are performing the upgrade work. This was the eighth of the planned monthly meetings that take place to make sure all project participants are up to speed with each other. Weekly coordination meetings are also conducted to address any problems that may arise.
Contractors working on the job are Kirk Bros Inc. and Claypool Electric Inc. Bids were awarded to these contractors at $2,825,000 for Kirk Bros and $2,918,700 for Claypool. Malcolm-Pirnie is the engineering firm overseeing the project.
An electrical upgrade is taking place plantwide to update the wiring and equipment from the 1950s and 1970s. “It’s old, and we’re getting to the point we can’t find parts anymore,” said Mike Curry, chief operator for the plant. “It’s definitely time.” Most of the existing electrical components are of the 1975 era, he said, adding that there were some small improvements and building upgrades made in the early 1990s.
A new generator is arriving soon which will supply backup power to the entire plant — an improvement over the current generator which would supply power to primary equipment only. The concrete pad has been poured, while parts of the generator will be brought in one piece at a time.
