A Message to Victor Residents About the Wastewater Lawsuit

Many of you saw the news that the City of Victor has filed a lawsuit related to our long-standing wastewater agreement with the City of Driggs. Because wastewater service affects every household and business in Victor, I want to take a moment to explain why the City took this step.

Victor and Driggs share a close and long-standing relationship. Our communities are deeply connected through families, businesses, and daily life in the valley. Because of that relationship, legal action between the two cities is not something the City considered lightly.

Victor has historically relied on Driggs’ wastewater treatment facility to process the water that leaves our homes and businesses. This arrangement allowed both communities to share infrastructure and avoid duplicating expensive systems. Driggs is our neighbor, and for many years the cities worked together in that spirit.

Over time, however, several issues emerged that raised serious concerns for Victor residents and ratepayers. These included ongoing compliance problems at the Driggs treatment facility, federal enforcement actions requiring significant upgrades, and financial questions related to how costs under the intercity agreement were calculated and allocated.

Victor spent years attempting to resolve these concerns through cooperation rather than confrontation. City staff and elected officials participated in negotiations, mediation, and independent financial review in an effort to clarify costs and find a path forward that was fair to both communities without resorting to litigation.

Unfortunately, those efforts did not lead to a resolution.

Victor also proposed several options that would have allowed the two cities to continue working together through a shared wastewater facility under updated terms. These included proposals for a joint partnership agreement, a fair customer agreement, and other shared-use arrangements that could have allowed the communities to continue operating a common system. Those proposals were not accepted by Driggs.

Victor has made the commitment to build our own wastewater treatment facility. That decision allows our community to plan for a reliable, locally managed system going forward. However, choosing to build our own plant does not resolve the financial and contractual issues connected to the existing agreement with Driggs. Questions about past costs, billing practices, and shared infrastructure responsibilities still need to be addressed.

For that reason, the City concluded that legal action was the only remaining way to resolve these matters in a clear, transparent, and structured way.

Filing a lawsuit is never the first choice between neighboring communities. It is a last resort when other efforts have been exhausted. Our goal is to establish clarity and fairness so that Victor residents are not left carrying costs or obligations that are not consistent with the agreement between the cities.

While the legal process moves forward, Victor will continue focusing on the same responsibilities we have always had: protecting our aquifer, maintaining reliable infrastructure, and planning carefully for the city’s future wastewater needs.

Residents who would like to learn more can visit the City’s wastewater information page: https://victoridaho.gov/wwtf

To receive updates about the wastewater project and related decisions, you can subscribe to the Wastewater Matters community newsletter here: https://victoridaho.gov/newsletter-signup.

If you have questions or would like to share your thoughts, you are also welcome to contact the Mayor’s office directly at mayor@victoridaho.gov

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Mayor Will Frohlich  

City of Victor