$4M grant going to WWTP flood mitigation project

Nov. 22—During Monday night's City Council meeting, the council approved a $4 million in grant funding that will be allocated toward flood mitigation at the Wastewater Treatment Plant in Austin.

The move also extended the expiration date of the grant to Dec. 31, 2027 and the money will be paired with local option sales tax money to fund the two-phase project. Construction is expected to be in 2025 and 2027.

The grant comes from the Minnesota Department of National Resources. The city paired with the DNR in April of 2018 when the council approved a grant in the sum of $1.125 million for flood mitigation.

Fifty percent of that money was used in the construction of phase 1 of the North Main Flood Control Project. Of that money, $300,000 was carried over through an amendment to be used for engineering and design work of the Wastewater Treatment Plant levee.

There is $25,000 remaining of the original grant to finalize the engineering and design.