Glory Reitz
The Newberry City Commission unanimously approved an interlocal agreement with its sister city Archer at a regular meeting on Monday. The agreement will allow Archer to use up to 175,000 gallons of capacity per day at Newberry’s wastewater treatment plant when an expansion is completed in 2026.
“When we unite our efforts, we can absolutely achieve great things,” Newberry Mayor Jordan Marlowe said in a Tuesday press release. “Not only are we building a system that will serve our communities today, but we’re also laying the foundation for environmental and economic sustainability for future generations.”
Newberry has been providing wastewater treatment for its residents since the 1970s, reducing carbon and insoluble materials before disinfecting and discharging the water back into the environment through irrigation spray heads.
The state requires operating permits for such wastewater treatment plants, renewed every five years. In Newberry’s most recent permit renewal, the state required compliance with new, more stringent state regulations on reduction of nutrients and biosolids. The new permit also requires Newberry to plan, design and construct a facility that can handle an increased capacity, due to the city’s growth.
The ensuing expansion project has already completed the planning phase, and is 95% through the design phase, according to Newberry City Manager Mike New. New said the city will soon start taking bids to begin construction, as the permit requires the expansion to be complete by March 2026.
New said the new treatment facility is expected to cost $50 million, a heavy price for the citizens of Newberry. City staff knew wastewater treatment facility costs were increasing faster than the rate of inflation as far back as 2021, but New said that spurred them to begin seeking funding partners. Though Newberry identified 20 potential partners, and inquired with most of them, Archer has been the only one to form an agreement.
Because the city has not yet started taking bids, New said there is not yet a set price for Archer’s involvement. He said once bids are in, Newberry staff can come up with a unit charge. Archer will pay up-front for the 175,000 gallons per day of capacity it has requested—enough for about 700 units, up from the 500 it currently has.
New estimated Archer will probably pay about $10 million up-front for capacity, in addition to the monthly charges based on usage. The monthly rate will be 70% of Newberry’s retail rate, as Archer plans to collect and pump its own wastewater, only using Newberry’s treatment plant
Archer, whose city commission unanimously approved the interlocal agreement earlier this month, plans to eventually provide its own wastewater treatment facilities. Those facilities are coming in two phases, the first of which is a collection system. Phase 2 will be a central wastewater plant in Archer.
According to a press release, Archer plans to start construction on its collection system in 2024 and it will be ready to operate as early as 2025. Archer will also adopt Newberry’s wastewater ordinances to regulate industrial discharges and manage fats, oils, and grease.
“This is what I consider to be a historic moment,” New said in the Monday meeting. “I will tell you that these types of partnerships between communities don’t happen that frequently.”
New said the city is also in discussions with Bronson about a similar agreement, and Fort White has expressed interest, but the distance could be prohibitive of such a partnership.