Now What? Moving Forward on Victor’s Wastewater Plan

Now What? Moving Forward on Victor’s Wastewater Plan

Over the past week, many of you have seen the news that the City of Victor will not be moving forward with the Evans property as the site for a future wastewater treatment facility. I want to take a moment to speak to what that means, and just as importantly, what it does not.

First, this does not change the responsibility in front of us. Victor still needs a long-term wastewater solution. We are still working under external timelines. And we remain committed to delivering a system that is reliable, compliant, and serves this community for decades to come.

What has changed is one piece of how we get there.

The Evans parcel was identified as a strong option based on a range of engineering and siting criteria for the City’s clear water initiative. It aligned well with how our system functions today and offered efficiencies in infrastructure, operations, and long-term cost. It was never the only option, but it was the best one we had identified.

Before the Evans parcel was identified, City staff and our engineering team had already conducted high-level screening of several other potential sites. These were early evaluations using publicly available data and not detailed engineering studies, but enough to understand which locations might work and which clearly wouldn’t.

With the Evans parcel no longer an immediate solution, we are returning to that work.

What Happens Next

We are now re-engaging with our engineers to evaluate alternative sites more closely. As we do that, we will be applying the same criteria that guided our earlier work, including:

How much on-site and off-site infrastructure each option would require

Whether the site works with gravity flow and our existing system

Proximity to utilities such as sewer, water, and power

Environmental considerations, including floodplains, canals, waterways, and required setbacks

Compatibility with nearby homes and surrounding land uses

Long-term operational reliability and financial efficiency

At a practical level, there are only a small number of sites that meet these criteria. Based on what we know today, we are likely evaluating two to three viable options.

Each requires additional engineering and legal analysis before we can move forward with confidence. That process could take several weeks at the earliest and may extend further depending on what we learn.

In parallel, there are other factors affecting the overall project timeline. Engineering and design work beyond the preliminary stage is already expected to pause into the summer due to the judicial confirmation process. Once a new site is selected, portions of the engineering work will need to be updated to reflect that location.

What this means is that while this change may introduce some delay, the project was already operating within a timeline that included key decision points later this year.

Cost and Tradeoffs

The Evans parcel was optimal across nearly every factor, including cost. Other sites are more likely to require additional infrastructure, which can increase overall project cost.

As a general rule of thumb, each additional $1 million in capital cost translates to roughly $1 per month on a typical wastewater bill. That is one of the reasons site selection matters so much, and why we are approaching this next phase carefully.

While losing the Evans site for now is not ideal, it does bring a level of clarity. As we move forward, we will be working within more direct and established legal and regulatory frameworks for site selection. That allows us to focus more directly on feasibility, acquisition, and delivery.

The City worked with the property owners in good faith throughout the process. Ultimately, they made the decision not to proceed. Decisions related to personal financial matters are specific to the property owners and are best addressed by them. We respect that decision and the relationship we have built through this process.

On Regional Options

There has also been speculation that this change means Victor will return to a regional wastewater solution. At this time, we do not believe a regional solution solves for Victor's needs nor do we believe it would be anymore cost efficient. Previous discussions did not result in an agreement, and we have not received any indication that those conditions have changed.

Our responsibility is to continue advancing a solution that we can deliver. Our commitment is to keep moving forward, to do so thoughtfully, and to communicate clearly as decisions are made. We expect to provide a more formal update to the Council and the public in early June as this next phase of site evaluation progresses.

There is still work ahead. But the direction remains the same. Thanks for all your questions, comments, and support.

— Will Frohlich, Mayor