Water treatment facility underway in Montreal

By PAMELA JANSSON

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Montreal — The construction of a new water treatment facility in Montreal is continuing to see progress after ground was broken for the project in early May.

“They have poured the footings and will be pouring the floor slab as rain allows,” said Mayor Kelly Traczyk in a Tuesday evening email.

She added, “We are also going to begin seeking funding for phase two of this project to add an ion exchange system for removal of total organic carbons and disinfection byproducts.”

Traczyk said that the first phase will include a green sand filter to remove manganese, which she said runs high in one of the city’s wells.

The mayor said a backwash tank also is already installed below ground. Because it was more than 120,000 pounds, a crane was needed to set it in place.

According to the mayor, “The building was designed to accommodate both phases and address all of our water quality issues we experience currently.”

She said the product has been funded, in part, by a $1 million Community Development Block Grant, known by its acronym of CDBG. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources also made possible $1.5 million in principal forgiveness.

Traczyk added that an increase in the nation’s infrastructure plan made the project possible for Montreal, which has a 2024 population of 799 people, according to the U.S. Census.

She said that Phase 1 of the project is expected to be completed by October.