The Town of Holly Springs has a new fiscal year budget starting this July that prioritizes utility investments to meet the water needs of a growing community. While the Town has enough water and sewer capacity today, advanced planning is underway to meet projections for the future.
“Water is a scarce resource, and it is the lifeblood of any growing community,” said Holly Springs Town Manager Randy Harrington. “I believe that communities that make forward-looking utility investments today will be the ones that succeed the most in quality of life and job growth in the future.”
Expanding Drinking Water Sources
Currently, the Town gets its drinking water from Harnett Regional Water, which uses the Cape Fear River as its source. Holly Springs also possesses additional water rights to access more water if necessary. Additional water connections are available with Fuquay-Varina, Apex, and Cary for emergency situations and resiliency purposes.
Today, the Town uses about 3.2 million gallons per day out of its maximum capacity of up to 10 million gallons per day. But with about 2,000 new residents moving in every year, combined with the new businesses and jobs coming to the community, the Town is proactively looking ahead. In the Land Use and Character Plan adopted by the Town Council in 2019, a third-party expert determined that at full build-out, the Town would need about 16 million gallons per day of drinking water. Holly Springs is partnering with other municipalities to tap into an additional water resource to meet those future needs.
The City of Sanford and towns of Fuquay-Varina, Holly Springs, and Pittsboro are engaged in a projected $237.3 million partnership to expand the City of Sanford’s water treatment facility. Holly Springs’ allocated cost portion is $49.3 million. Additionally, plans have the Towns of Fuquay-Varina and Holly Springs partnering to construct a currently estimated $118 million 14-mile water conveyance line from the City of Sanford to both communities. Holly Springs’ allocated cost portion is $45 million.
Planned Sewer Capacity Upgrades
Additional sewer capacity is also required given current growth projections. The initial expansion will increase current treatment capacity at the Utley Creek Wastewater Facility from 6 million gallons per day to 8 million gallons per day by 2027. This investment is currently estimated at $116.2 million. Phase II will occur in the early 2030s and take the 8 million gallons per day capacity to 14 million gallons per day.
Water and Sewer Fee Impact
These and other utility investments over the next five years total close to $300 million. For the typical homeowner, total monthly water and sewer rates and charges will increase 15%, or $9.82/average per month (depending on water usage) for a total projected monthly bill of $75.20. Those increases will appear in the August utility bill that is mailed on August 31. Despite these rate increases, the Town’s rates remain very competitive, and the typical residential homeowner’s monthly total bill is projected to remain near the State average according to UNC School of Government data.
For more information about utility investments in Holly Springs, visit the Town’s website, www.hollyspringsnc.gov/transparency.
