Though construction is already underway, Ramsey City Council members on Tuesday participated in a ceremonial groundbreaking for a new water treatment plant.
Ramsey is spending about $37 million on the facility, making it the largest public works project in the northwestern Anoka County community's history. The city began saving for the facility in 2004 and had amassed more than $32 million.
"This foresight put the city in an exceptional financial position on this project," Mayor Mark Kuzma said at Tuesday's ceremony.
About $3.2 million in bonding monrey and a sales tax exemption the Legislature granted during the 2023 session will cover the remaining costs.
Ramsey officials declared a need for the plant in 2019, when the Minnesota Department of Health detected concentrations of manganese above recommended health guidelines in several of the city's eight wells.
"Children and adults who drink water with high levels of manganese for a long time may have problems with memory, attention and motor skills," according to the health department.
The water treatment plant would provide a permanent solution to the manganese and iron problem, officials said earlier this year in announcing the project.
The facility being built on a parcel next to the city's Public Works Department is designed to filter 10 million gallons of water a day, far above current usage, which peaks at about 6 million gallons a day during the summer. The building also will include a control room, lab, meeting room and restroom.
