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Crews are moving dirt on a $1.2 billion wastewater system in southern Hillsborough County, Florida, the largest capital improvement project in the county’s history.
Garney, a Kansas City, Missouri-based contractor, broke ground on the One Water – South Wastewater Conveyance and Treatment Project, a multicomponent system designed to expand treatment capacity and water reuse, according to a Monday news release.
The contractor will deliver the project through a progressive design-build contract, which includes the construction of a new advanced wastewater treatment facility and more than 20 miles of pipeline infrastructure.
The treatment facility will ultimately handle 24 million gallons per day, with design considerations to expand to 30 million gallons per day in the future with minimal disruptions to operations, according to the release. The project also includes the 54 million gallons per day Balm Road Super Lift Station with a 5 million-gallon emergency storage tank.
“What makes this project stand out is that it goes beyond simply adding treatment capacity,” Eric Wagner, director of southeast plant operations at Garney, said in the release. “At a time when growing communities are looking for more sustainable ways to plan ahead, Hillsborough County is setting a strong example through its long-term investment in infrastructure.”
Project scope also entails the installation of roughly 10 miles of wastewater pipelines and 13 miles of reclaimed water lines, ranging from 42-inch to 48-inch ductile iron pipe. Once complete, the system will convey wastewater to the new facility and send reclaimed water back into the county’s reuse network.
The award adds to Garney’s expanding role in major water infrastructure builds across the Tampa Bay region. For example, earlier this year, the contractor also broke ground on a $505.7 million water pipeline in Hillsborough County.
The projects are not related and will not connect in any way, Garney told Construction Dive.
The One Water milestone marks the vertical construction phase for the treatment plant and lift stations, as pipeline work began in the fall of 2025. Officials expect the facility to begin treating initial flows by September 2028, with full project completion slated for 2030, according to the release.
