Andrews wastewater treatment plant groundbreaking a sign of progress

Andrews – After two years in the making, a groundbreaking ceremony for the Town of Andrews’ wastewater treatment facility project was held on March 23. 
With funding from COVID-19 legislation and $15.2 million through grants, work can begin to prepare Andrews’ wastewater needs “for the next 20-40 years,” Andrews Mayor James Reid said.
Engineering is being handled by McGill, with construction helmed by a team contracted from Haren and funding from the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality.
The 1950s-era facility has been needing significant upgrades with the town’s growth, and this “modernization project will focus on replacing the trickling filter biological treatment system and will build upon upgrades made in 2018 and 2023,” according to McGill.
Reid said when he first saw the need during his first term as mayor, “We had a request for a $4 million loan and needed another $75,000 to even do any work, and it seemed impossible.”
The town had former town administrator Sandy Dobson gather resources from the state and other sources. 
COVID-19 led to an $11 million grant from the American Rescue Plan Act.
“This is the best thing to come out of COVID,” Reid said. 
“Andrews has had a hard time without wanting to increase taxes, but we’re ready to push forward.”
McGill’s senior principal on the project, Joel Storrow, first worked on the Mudtown and Happy Top sections of Andrews, and said, “We knew that the town as a whole needed a newer facility to keep in line with the growth of new residents post-COVID and for the future.”
“We were able to work on those projects and then the monies came through for upgrades and we knew Andrews would benefit from this overhaul of the facility,” Storrow said. “We were also able to get some more dollars for the project with another $360,000 grant in 2024.”
McGill vice president and chief technology officer Keith Webb provided the technological basics of how the new biologic facility will work.
“Now, the two tanks called trickling filters worked great for the 1960s, but the growth since then is just no longer optimally supported,” he said. “There’s a filter that removes inorganic matter that is currently being disposed of in the landfill. This new facility will contain a compactor to make that easier to dispose of.
“The aerators will help process and consume the organic matter so that it will be easier to dispatch into the river with our improvements,” he said.
The new plans also call for an oxidation ditch, which will be the first portion of construction and will take 12 months to complete. The ditch will replace the filters and the current holding tanks will be demolished. 
Also on hand at the event were McGill President Andy Lovingood, Andrews Board of Aldermen members Chasity Ledford and James Mclean, Town Administrator Tammy Holloway, Town Clerk Ethan McCubbin, Haren Site Superintendent Randell Knepper, and Claire Osborn with N.C. Department of Environmental Quality. 
Andrews Public Works director Derek Luther and Tim Wood, director of the facility, were also in attendance as work progressed in the background during the ceremony.
Special guest Andrews High School Principal Dorin Oxender, brought along Student Government vice president Caleb Stillwell along with sophomore marketing specialist Joshua Badilla-Jimenez.
Reid said, “We’re proud to have them here and I invited them because this matters to everyone in Andrews. Every building. Every business. This is for us all.”
McGill provided a catered luncheon from Legends Steakhouse at the Community Center after the ceremony. The luncheon included barbecue.
Details: Visit andrewsnc.org and mcgillassociates.com.