Collinsville authorizes agreement to expand water treatment plant, initiate Clearwell Project

By Tribune Staff • Collinsville’s City Council approved a professional services agreement at its most recent council meeting on Tuesday, July 21 with WHKS & Co. for comprehensive engineering services required to construct a 5,500-square-foot water treatment plant (WTP) PFAS treatment addition, a 1,400-square-foot low lift pump station and a new 1 MG (million gallon) clear well to the existing facility.

WHKS’ scope of work under this agreement consists of nine core phases: project management, IEPA coordination and permitting, funding technical assistance, topographic surveys, preliminary design (including architectural, MEP and Phase 1 pilot testing), final design and cost estimation, bidding assistance, construction administration and full-time resident project observation. This project was identified in the 2026 CIP as project WT-P-FAS with a budget of $750,000. The remaining balance of $1,125,000 will be included in fiscal years 2027, 2028 and 2029 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP).

The city is moving forward with proactive planning and infrastructure design to mitigate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the municipal drinking water supply, utilizing specialized pressure filtration with either granular activated carbon (GAC) or anion exchange (AIX) media as established in the Collinsville WTP PFAS Project Planning Report dated Dec. 11, 2025.

The proposed improvements will expand the current facility footprint, with an approximate 5,500 square-foot building addition off the west side of the existing WTP. Additionally, the new low lift pump station will be integrated at the existing clearwell to supply a newly constructed clearwell basin situated to the south of the current clear well.

To safely position the structural additions outside local environmental hazards, the building design will strictly adhere to the city’s minimum flood plain requirements, establishing foundations at least two feet above the 100-years base flood elevation.

Funding sources for the new development at the water treatment plant will come from the Enterprise Capital Fund, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) State Revolving Fund (SRF) loan program, Federal Community Project Funding (CPF) via Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski, State Legislative Support/Grants via Senator Erica Harriss and PFAS National Litigation Proceeds (including payouts from 3M, DuPont, BASF and Tyco).

Under the lump-sum fee structure, WHKS will manage the following critical milestones: 

• IEPA and funding coordination: Complete construction and operating permit applications, research special media disposal NPDES requirements for spent PFAS media and provide technical assistance to staff for the IEPA State Revolving Fund (SRF) loan process 
• Geotechnical investigation: Execute four Piezocone Penetration Test (CPTu) soundings to a depth of 30 feet to confirm subsurface soil stability 
• Pilot study phase 1: Assess precise pilot testing and filter media demands utilizing expert subconsultants 
• Construction oversight: Provide comprehensive construction administration alongside full-time onsite resident observation spanning an estimated 15-month construction window (totaling 2,700 daily observation hours and 945 periodic design staff hours)

The anticipated construction timeline is estimated to begin in February 2028, contingent upon securing an IEPA SRF loan commitment letter by January 2028, with a project completion target of Aug. 15, 2029.