Mayor: Upgraded Sewer Plant Means Savings

Parsippany's upgraded sewer treatment plant is officially open.

Work on the $25 million three-year construction project was completed in May, and on Tuesday, dignitaries and town workers gathered at the Edwards Road plant to celebrate with a grand opening and ribbon cutting.

Sewer Superintendent Phil Bober told the assembled crowd that he was grateful that forces converged to make the long-awaited upgrade a reality.

"Thank you to the Town Council and the administration of Parsippany, which steadfastly supported this project," he said. "It took a facility that was one of the largest users of electricity on the JCP&L grid and converted it to among the smallest."

Bober said the conversion would not have been possible without "a brilliant design by our engineers, CDM Smith, and a nearly flawless construction by Spectraserv."

Mayor James Barberio hailed the state-of-the-art, energy-efficient facility, stating that it would save the town significant sums while creating new revenue for the township.

"In January of 2010, I stood before you as the new mayor of Parsippany-Troy Hills  for the groundbreaking of the new sewer plant construction," he recalled. "It was about 10 degrees outside and we couldn't break ground.

"And here I am, 2 1/2 years later, to celebrate the culmination of this long-awaited project. I would never have guessed that the groundbreaking and this ribbon cutting would be two of the highlights of my administration," the mayor said. "This is an amazing project on so many different levels."

Barberio said the work would not have been possible without a $5 million federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grant and $20 million in low-interest loans through the state Department of Environmental Protection's New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust Program.

"The team working on the project was phenomenal," the mayor continued. "This project was completed in 18 months under budget. Additionally, the savings in electrical costs have exceeded projections. Our electric bills have been reduced from $140,000 approximately a month to $41,000 a month.

"Ladies and gentlemen, that is a $1 million savings annually, and these savings will be passed on to our residents [and to] commercial and municipal ratepayers."

The mayor said the excess tankage will "be put to good use and generate additional revenues for the township," adding that a study will be done to explore the possibilities.

"This is now a state-of-the-art facility and a technical achievement," he said.

, according to Business Administrator Jasmine Lim. The target date for that equipment to be ready to go online is sometime in 2014.

Among those in attendance at the grand opening were Freeholders Ann Grossi and John Cesaro, Loretta Gragnani of the Zoning Board of Adjustment, Business Administrator Jasmine Lim and Town Council members Paul Carifi Jr. and Michael dePierro. Also on hand were officials from Montville and East Hanover, towns that along with Mountain Lakes and parts of Denville will use the plant's services.