Major renovations at Canton's largest water treatment plant begin in February
CANTON − A couple of bricks have tumbled from the Sugar Creek Water Treatment Plant's entranceway, and the plant itself contains a mix of original 1960s to early 2000s-era equipment.
The entrance will be repaired and equipment modernized as part of a $37 million upgrade to the city plant. It is expected to begin in February and take three years to complete.
"This will all be replaced," Water Superintendent Tyler Converse said about two chlorination rooms where liquid chlorine is kept in large cylinders with dated machines. The same is true for a control room and numerous other parts of the plant.
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The Sugar Creek plant along state Route 212 in Franklin Township in Tuscarawas County is the largest of three city water treatment plants and serves about 50,000 people ― roughly half the city's customers. It underwent an expansion and received new filters in 1995 and a new roof in 2006. (Information has been corrected to fix an error.See correction at end of story).
"Usually, water treatment plants or facilities of that nature will undergo a major renovation every 20 to 25 years to keep them up to par," Converse said. "This particular plant, which is our main plant for the city of Canton, it has not undergone a comprehensive renovation since it was originally built in 1960."
The city's northeast and northwest water treatment plants have been updated, he said, so this renovation is "well overdue." Updating the building, its electric, and other components will ensure it continues operating well into the future.
Burgess & Niple, a Columbus-based engineering and architecture firm, conducted a capital improvement plan in 2019 for the Sugar Creek plant and then completed the $2.6 million design work in 2020 and 2021. Converse said the city has up to $46.9 million available through a low-interest water supply revolving loan from the state for the project.
In anticipation of upgrades to Water Department infrastructure, including the Sugar Creek plant, the city has incrementally raised customer rates in recent years. The average monthly water bill for city residents is an estimated $13.98 after the most recent increase in March 2022.
"We've tried to spread it out," Converse said.
The goal is to make improvements without any disruptions to customers, but Converse compared it to "trying to repair your car while your car is running." There might be some changes in water pressure or brief shutdowns.
"We will be minimizing any disruption to the system and also keeping a close eye on the water quality in our service during this time," he said.
One of the original elements of the building that will remain is a tile mural in the foyer. It depicts the water cycle with rainfall, components of the city water system, and a man, cow and agriculture ― all reliant on water. The man is holding five cups to represent the qualities of drinking water:
Clear and colorless
Pure
Free from bad taste
Free from disagreeable odor
Biologically safe
Reach Kelly at 330-580-8323 or kelly.byer@cantonrep.comOn Twitter: @kbyerREP
Correction: The water treatment plant is in Franklin Township. The location was incorrect when the story was first published.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: Canton plans major renovation at its largest water treatment plant
