Chemung County is consolidating two aging wastewater treatment plants into a single, expanded regional facility to improve water quality, control costs, and meet stringent regulatory requirements tied to the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The program will decommission the Lake Street Wastewater Treatment Plant, expand and upgrade the Milton Street facility, and construct new conveyance infrastructure to reliably move flows across the system. With an estimated construction value of approximately $224 million, it is the largest infrastructure project in Chemung County’s history.

As electrical engineer-of-record, ELECSYS is designing new medium-voltage primary service, standby generation, and plant-wide power distribution to support the expanded regional plant. Scope includes new 12.47-kV utility service and switchgear, redundant generator systems with medium-voltage paralleling switchgear, low-voltage switchboards and motor control centers, site and building lighting, grounding and lightning protection, and fire alarm, communications, and SCADA/fiber networks. ELECSYS is also performing power system studies—including short-circuit, coordination, and arc-flash analysis—to help the County and project team make informed decisions about safety, reliability, and maintainability over the long term.

Working in close coordination with the prime engineer and County stakeholders, ELECSYS is helping fast-track design to meet a compressed consent-order schedule while maintaining constructability and a clear path for future expansion. When complete, the consolidated facility will provide modern, resilient wastewater treatment for the Elmira area, protect local waterways and the Chesapeake Bay, and give the Chemung County Sewer Districts a more efficient platform for operations and maintenance for decades to come.