BY JEFF CHUDZINSKINorth Country This Week

MASSENA -- The village of Massena will work with engineering firm Navitas for the final design of the wastewater treatment plant facility upgrades. 

The project is one that trustees have taken various actions on in the past but bringing in Navitas will push the project forward now. 

Trustees approved an agreement not to exceed $835,000 to bring the firm onboard. 

Mayor Greg Paquin said the contract follows a full review of the facility that found a number of concerns, including a number of pumps that require upgrading or replacement, along with a filtration system that was said to "nearly be on its last legs." 

Paquin clarified that village trustees had taken similar action for the Bowers Street water tower, which will be repaired instead of replaced in the short-term. 

Late last year, trustees authorized a $34 million bond to cover extensive water system improvements throughout the village, including upgrades to the water treatment plant. 

A bond of $8.5 million was approved in May for the rehab of the water tower, a solution Mayor Greg Paquin said was "a much better option." 

"This is a much better option, I feel. I know some folks were concerned about losing an iconic structure but this will allow us to repair it instead," Paquin said in May. 

Department of Public Works Superintendent Steve Dailey said the rehab project is still feasible, noting the tower will be recoated and repainted. 

The move to bond for rehabilitation came around six months after trustees previously agreed to bond for $34 million that would allow the village to replace the tower, make major updates to an aging water treatment plant, while also addressing multiple water lines throughout the village that are in need of replacement. 

Officials said part of that project would be to replace a redundant water line that crossed the South Raquette bridge on the southern end of the village, which has proven temperamental in the past with multiple leaks during the winter and spring months. 

As part of the upgrades, trustees say filtration systems and water pumps in the treatment plant will be replaced following a review conducted by engineers that identified a number of concerns. 

Among them was the concern that numerous pumps have been rebuilt multiple times, cost saving measures in the past that have now begun to outpace revenue. 

As a result, trustees opted to also increase water rates earlier this year. 

The increase is part of a five-year phase that trustees said was necessary due to increased expenses and reduced revenues. 

Paquin said the water department has lost money several years in a row while also incurring major repair bills related to broken water lines, pump rebuilds and other factors. 

"It's just not sustainable. We have no option but to raise the rates. We haven't done this in a very long time, probably over 15 years," he said earlier this year. 

Now with Navitas in the fold, village officials say designs and planning will move forward, though no timeline was readily available as of the meeting.