Water Treatment Plant Updates for Neighbors

About This Page

This page and information is for those that live in the immediate area of our water treatment plant. It is about impacts from demolition and construction during treatment plant improvements.

For general information please go to the Plant Improvement section of the Our Work page.

Updates

Project updates will be posted here throughout the duration of the project.

January 13, 2025

Roofing Work to Take Place Starting Jan. 14

At times, roofing work will require placing hot asphalt, which will produce an odor that may be strong depending on the wind direction.
The odor should be intermittent and is not expected to last for the full duration of the roofing work.
This work should be similar to roofing work that was performed onsite late last year.

Construction Work to Take Place on Saturdays

Construction work is to take place on Saturdays from 7 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. starting on Saturday, Jan. 18.

Slide Rail System Being Installed

A slide rail system is being installed on the west side of the facility. Expect loud banging during work hours.

72-inch Pipe to be Delivered

Large, 72-inch diameter pipe will be delivered twice a week every week until February. The deliveries should have minimum impact on neighbors other than encounters during deliveries on the road will be conspicuous.

Site is Extremely Busy

The entire site is extremely busy with activity in nearly every section.

December 2, 2024
Roofing Work to Take Place Dec. 16 - 20
At times, roofing work will require placing hot asphalt, which will produce an odor that may be strong depending on the wind direction.
The odor should be intermittent and is not expected to last for the full duration of the roofing work.
This work should be similar to roofing work that was performed onsite in May of this year.
Slide Rail System Being Installed
A slide rail system is being installed on the west side of the facility. Expect loud banging during work hours through December 16.
72-inch Pipe to be Delivered
Large, 72-inch diameter pipe will be delivered twice a week every week until February. The deliveries should have minimum impact on neighbors other than encounters during deliveries on the road will be conspicuous.
Site is Extremely Busy
The entire site is extremely busy with activity in nearly every section.
October 29, 2024
Slide Rail System Being Installed
A slide rail system is being installed on the west side of the facility. Expect loud banging during work hours for the next month.
72-inch Pipe to be Delivered
Large, 72-inch diameter pipe will be delivered twice a week every week until February. The deliveries should have minimum impact on neighbors other than encounters during deliveries on the road will be conspicuous.
Site is Extremely Busy
The entire site is extremely busy with activity in nearly every section.
September 25, 2024
Roofing on the Lime Building to be Complete

Roofing on the lime building is to be complete by the end of the week.
Tower Crane Removed
The tower crane has been removed.
Work Along Eastern Perimeter Continues
Work along the eastern perimeter will continue; movement and activity is expected.
Site is Extremely Busy
The entire site is extremely busy with activity in nearly every section.
August 20, 2024
Roofing on the Lime Building Set for August 26

On Monday, August 26, roofing on the lime building is expected to begin and continue for several weeks.
At times, roofing work will require placing hot asphalt, which will produce an odor that may be strong depending on the wind direction.
The odor should be intermittent and is not expected to last for the full duration of the roofing work.
This work should be similar to roofing work that was performed onsite in May of this year.
Tall Power Crane to be Removed
The tall power crane is scheduled to be removed the week of Sept. 3. Work is expected to continue through the week, and weather depending, may continue into the weekend. This work may require staging in the Sandy Lake area.
Sylvan Street Directional Drilling
Directional drilling is scheduled to take place on Sylvan Street, starting the week of August 19 and continuing through to the end of the week of August 30. There may be some noise associated with this work.
Work Along Eastern Perimeter Continues
Work along the eastern perimeter will continue; movement and activity is expected.
Site is Extremely Busy
The entire site is extremely busy with activity in nearly every section.
August 6, 2024
Roofing on the Lime Building Set for August 26
On Monday, August 26, roofing on the lime building is expected to begin and continue for several weeks.
At times, roofing work will require placing hot asphalt, which will produce an odor that may be strong depending on the wind direction.
The odor should be intermittent and is not expected to last for the full duration of the roofing work.
This work should be similar to roofing work that was performed onsite in May of this year.
Work with the oversized panels on the lime building is complete and the traffic on Roselawn should return to normal.
Work Along Eastern Perimeter Continues
Work along the eastern perimeter will continue; movement and activity is expected.
Site is Extremely Busy
The entire site is extremely busy with activity in nearly every section.
July 16, 2024
Work on the Lime Building Continues

On Thursday, July 18, lime silos will be moved to the northern-most lime building.
Additional cranes will be onsite as well as additional traffic on Roselawn from Sandy Lake.
Work continues on the precast concrete panels that are being installed on the
new lime building.
Moving the oversized panels may cause temporary and intermittent backups
on the roadway coming into the plant project up to 4-5 times a day.
Hauling the oversized panels will continue through the end of July.
Work Along Eastern Perimeter Continues
Work along the eastern perimeter will continue with movement of soils from the large earthen mound.
Additional movement and activity is expected for the next three weeks.
Small, Brown Dog Onsite
A small, brown dog has been seen on the site and staff is concerned for its safety.
Please keep pets in the backyard or tied up to prevent injury to them on the work site.
July 2, 2024
July 4-8 Break
The site will be quite over the Fourth of July holiday, with work resuming on July 8.
Precast Concrete Panel Work Continues

Beginning on June 14, precast concrete panels will be installed on the
new lime building. Once they are up, it should provide an awareness of the
final height of the building.
Moving the oversized panels may cause temporary and intermittent backups
on the roadway coming into the plant project up to 4-5 times a day.
Hauling the oversized panels will continue through the third week in July.
Work Along Eastern Perimeter
Work along the eastern perimeter will continue with the installation of an electrical manhole.
There will be some digging behind neighboring properties.
Completed Since Last Update
Piling Removal

Sheet pilings noted in red on the map above will begin to be removed on June 19.
The work will produce noise and vibration. Repeated pulses of loud metallic
hammering similar to that caused when the sheet piling was installed is to
be expected. The work is expected to last approximately two weeks.
Moving Materials
Materials along the eastern fenced will be moved, creating movement and
noise along that fence area.
Tree Planting

As of this spring, we have planted trees all the way
along the eastern edge of our property, near
Beaumont Street. This is to allow the trees more
time to mature.
A Note on the Crane on Site
I’ve been in touch with some of the neighbors to the site regarding the large tower crane, and I’ve heard neighbors express concerns that the crane swings towards the neighborhood sometimes at night and over the weekend. If you share this concern, you may find the information below helpful.
During high winds, the crane will rotate so that it points in the direction of the wind (this is called weathervaning). This minimizes wind loads on the crane, which minimizes the risk of damage to the crane. Of course, tower cranes are always designed with an extreme abundance of caution. The risk of wind damage is miniscule; nonetheless precautions are taken wherever opportunities exist. Allowing the crane to weathervane during high winds is one such precaution; the chance of wind damage is already very low, and allowing the crane to weathervane reduces it even further.
If you're observing the crane rotating in the evenings and over the weekends, you're actually observing a feature that is designed to keep everyone around the tower crane safe. It may not feel that way, and, I can understand how it might make neighbors feel nervous. Knowing that it's a safety feature, however, I couldn't advise in good conscience that the construction team follow any other practice.
We are currently investigating the possibility of modifying the crane such that it only weathervanes when wind speeds exceed a certain threshold. If this can be done practically, we will add this feature. Doing so would reduce “nuisance” instances of weathervaning and would limit weathervaning of the crane to only when wind speeds generate meaningful loads on the crane.
May 2, 2023 Update
Upcoming Severe Weather Drills
The construction team on site is firmly committed to the safety of everyone on the project and in the area of the project. We’re pleased to share that we recently surpassed 100,000 hours of labor on the project without any lost-time injuries.
Part of ensuring that workers on site are safe in any circumstance is preparing for any severe weather events. To that effect, the construction team will be doing a severe weather drill on May 3, 2023 around 11:45 am. To begin the drill, the construction team plans to issue three blasts from an air horn on the site. Neighbors may hear these blasts and observe workers evacuating the site.
This should not be cause for concern for neighbors as this is a planned event focused on preparing for severe weather.
A Look Ahead at Summer 2023
With the winter season coming to an end, we wanted to provide another update to neighbors of the McCarron’s Water Treatment Plant. We’re looking forward to the onset of warm weather and returning to warm-weather construction.
This summer will be very busy on site, but it should be considerably less disruptive to neighbors than the previous summer. During the summer of 2022 demolition work and sheet piling driving were undoubtedly the noisiest activities. There is no significant demolition work or sheet piling driving on the schedule for this summer.
Generally, this summer’s work will primarily be focused on installing rebar, pouring concrete, setting precast panels in place, and installing pipework. Noise levels on the site should be fairly consistent to what they were throughout the winter months as these activities are generally fairly quiet. Of course, there will continue to be the run-of-the-mill construction noises (backup beepers, dump trucks, etc.) coming from the site. Visual impacts on neighbors are likely to be more noticeable than audible impacts. As you may have noted, there are three cranes operating on the site at present. At least two cranes will be active on the site for most of the summer.
Construction on the new facility is approximately 25% complete. Throughout the summer, work at the site will continue to be primarily exterior work (pouring concrete, etc.) When we get closer to the 50% complete mark, much of the work will begin to move into the interiors of the structures, causing less noise and visual impact for neighbors.
Work Completed Since Last Update
- The security system referenced in the last update has been installed on the site. The alarms have been tested, and the alarm sound is highly localized. We do not expect that the alarm noise would be audible for neighboring properties.
- Precision demolition work has been mostly completed.
- Foundations for the new facilities are under construction. Installation of rebar and concrete will continue throughout the winter.
Upcoming Work
- The construction of a tower crane on site will begin on Thursday, November 17 and will continue throughout the weekend. If weather conditions cooperate, the crane may be fully built by the end of Saturday, November 19. Otherwise, work may continue on Sunday, November 20 as well. The construction of the tower crane is not expected to be noisy but will be visible to neighbors. Once constructed, the tower crane will operate on site for approximately 2 years.
- Work on facilities will continue through the winter months. By continuing to work through the winter, we will shorten the project schedule and, consequently, the duration of the impact to neighbors. Winter activities are expected to be less impactful for neighbors since more time is spent indoors during the winter months.
Work Completed Since Last Update
- Trees were planted behind the back fence line of most Beaumont Street properties. Planting these trees early will give them a couple extra years of growth to help block views of the site sooner. Much more tree planting will be done towards the end of the project as well.
- Precision demolition work has begun and is progressing well.
- Extensive concrete work and pipe work within the excavation has been completed, preparing the way for the future facilities.
Upcoming Work
- A security system will be installed on the site. The security system will help to prevent unauthorized trespassing on the site outside of work hours and will include video cameras. The security system is equipped with an alarm, but the alarm system includes protections against false alarms. ONCE FULLY INSTALLED ON SITE, IT IS LIKELY THAT WE WILL TEST THE ALARM SYSTEM BRIEFLY IN ORDER TO CHECK THAT IT IS WORKING CORRECTLY AND TO GAUGE HOW LOUD THE SYSTEM MIGHT BE FOR NEIGHBORS. Our sincere hope is that the alarm system proves unnecessary and causes no disturbances to neighbors. Having the alarm system available for use as needed, however, should help to prevent the site from becoming attractive to bad actors.
- The sheet pile removal referenced in the last update from October 12 has been delayed. That work is now scheduled for the week of October 31 - November 4. The work is still expected to take 3 days to complete and will generate considerable noise and vibration.
Work Completed Since Last Update
- Soil stored on site has been sprayed with seed. The seed will remain dormant throughout the winter and will sprout in the spring of 2023. The soil berm behind Jackson Street has been completed. The area is expected to remain undisturbed until 2024, when soil will be reimported to the site for back fill.
- Click to view a PDF with general updates on project status (including some photos of progress)
Upcoming Work
- Beginning on Oct. 17, we will begin planting trees along the property boundary where possible. At present, that will allow us to plant trees behind the back fence line of most Beaumont Street properties. While planting trees, workers will be close to the property boundary and may be working near the fence line. Originally, all landscaping work was planned for the end of the project, but SPRWS and the construction team have made an extra effort to plant trees earlier where possible. The early planting will allow more time for trees to mature so that they provide neighboring properties with visual screening sooner.
- As noted in the Sept. 13 update, precision demolition work still needs to be completed. This work is expected to begin on October 17. The work will occur at the far southwestern corner of the construction site, but the activity will be noisy. The remaining demolition work is expected to last approximately 3 weeks.
- As noted in the previous update, sheet piling has been installed on the site. Some of the sheet piling installed at the bottom of the excavation has now served its purpose in allowing for the construction of subgrade facilities. As such, 3 days of sheet pile removal are scheduled to begin on October 24. Sheet pile removal for these three days is expected to generate levels of noise and vibration similar to those encountered during the installation.

Virtual Open House

The virtual open house was held on Tuesday, February 1, 2022. A recording of the virtual open house is available below:

Much of the information presented in the first open house can also be found in this set of posters (PDF - 2.8MB).

Letters

Below are copies of the letters we've sent thus far:

March 2022 Letter (PDF - 1.07 MB)

December 2021 Letter (PDF - 76 KB)

August 2021 Letter (PDF - 536 KB)

Project Overview

An overview of some of the most important project details.

Timeline

March - May 2022 – Tree removals and some small-scale activities on site (i.e. moving small equipment, etc.)
May 2022 – Stage 1 demolition work begins
Fall - Winter 2022 – New facility construction work begins
Winter 2025 – Stage 2 demolition work begins
Mid-2026 – Project is complete

Please see the sections below for more information on each of these activities. The project schedule is subject to change as countless factors influence the rate of progress.

Impacts on Neighbors

As noted in the letter that we mailed in August 2021, neighboring properties are expected to experience impacts from the work, including:

Traffic – You may encounter some construction traffic on Larpenteur Avenue, Roselawn Avenue, Sylvan Street, and Rice Street near your home.
Noise – Depending upon proximity to the site, you are likely to hear construction noise when you are outdoors and/or when you have your windows open. During particularly noisy construction activities, neighbors located close to the property may also be able to hear the project even with their windows closed.
Visual Impacts – Depending upon proximity to the site, you may be able to see the construction and demolition work as it occurs. As noted above, many trees on site will be removed, so views of the property will be meaningfully altered for neighbors.

Work Hours

SPRWS anticipates that most work will be accomplished during the following working hours: Monday to Friday from 7:00 am - 5:30 pm.

Occasionally, work may need to be pushed into evening hours or weekend hours if unexpected circumstances are encountered. Existing noise ordinances allow for work to be performed Monday to Saturday from 7:00 am - 7:00 pm.

Generally, work will only be planned outside of the stated hours if it is expected to be quiet or if it must be accomplished at night due to extenuating circumstances.

We understand that these are your evenings and your weekends, and we have every intention of ensuring that we limit impacts as much as possible during these sensitive times.

Demolition of Facilities

Many existing facilities will be demolished as part of this project. Demolition work will be completed in two stages as shown in the graphic below. In general, demolition work will be the noisiest part of the project. Most of the structures that will be demolished are large, below-ground facilities. Our team continues to work through details of the demolition plan to minimize impacts on neighbors.

*Map showing SPRWS facilities to be demolished during stage 1 and stage 2*

Stage 1 Demolition will take place from summer through winter of 2022. The demolition of these facilities will free up space to build the new facilities. Overall, this demolition work is expected to take 7 months.

Stage 2 Demolition will take place after the new facilities are fully constructed and operational. This work is likely to occur in the winter of 2025. Overall, this demolition work is expected to take 10 months.

New Facility Construction

New facilities will be constructed on the northeast portion of the site. Ultimately, much of the construction will be below-ground and will not be visible once the project is completed. There will, however, be numerous above-ground facilities constructed as well. The graphic below provides a sense of the locations and scales of the facilities that we plan to construct.

*Overview graphic showing models of new above ground facilities and areas where underground facilities will be located*

Water Treatment Plant Updates for Neighbors

About This Page

Updates

January 13, 2025

Roofing Work to Take Place Starting Jan. 14

Construction Work to Take Place on Saturdays

Slide Rail System Being Installed

72-inch Pipe to be Delivered

Site is Extremely Busy

December 2, 2024 Update

October 29, 2024 Update

September 25, 2024 Update

August 20, 2024 update

August 6, 2024 Update

July 16, 2024 Update

July 2, 2024, Update

June 12, 2024 Update

May 2, 2023

November 16, 2022 Update

October 28, 2022 Update

October 12, 2022 Update