NORTH TONAWANDA – Following the New York State Legislature’s adoption of the state budget for fiscal year 2022-23, Assemblyman Bill Conrad visited the City of North Tonawanda Wastewater Treatment Plant today, April 19, 2022, to highlight the spending plan’s inclusion of $5 million in capital funding for badly needed repairs to the facility on River Road.

The 42-year-old plant is responsible for cleaning wastewater for 30,000 residents. Its functionality has suffered over time, as its costly maintenance demands mounted. The plant now features corroded interior pipes that spew water, an inoperable digester that failed in 2020, faulty pumps, and a lack of backup power that would spell disaster in the event of an outage.

Plant personnel have been warning city leadership that the facility is on the brink of collapse, which would cause backups into basements across North Tonawanda and force the discharge of raw sewage into the Niagara River.

Conrad met with North Tonawanda Mayor Austin Tylec and Water/Wastewater Superintendent Jason Koepsell at the facility in March, at their request. Conrad saw firsthand the urgent needs and immediately began advocating for the state’s funding support in Albany. He spoke with Assembly leadership and the Department of Environmental Conservation, sharing photos and footage that conveyed the plant’s ailing condition. He also wrote to Governor Kathy Hochul and issued a public plea, with Tylec’s and Koepsell’s help, for federal American Rescue Plan monies to be put toward the necessary upgrades.

The $5 million line item was introduced in the Assembly’s one-house budget proposal and with continued advocacy made it into the state’s final spending plan for 2022-23. The budget bill containing the funding was adopted by both the Assembly and the Senate on April 9, 2022.

Assemblyman Bill Conrad said, “The plant is degrading at a quickening pace, and now the total expected cost of the necessary repairs certainly exceeds what taxpayers can bear. I thank North Tonawanda Mayor Austin Tylec for making this project a priority of his new administration, as well as Water/Wastewater Superintendent Jason Koepsell, his team, and the North Tonawanda Common Council for advocating for its upkeep. Their efforts brought my attention to the dire situation at hand here, and to the looming catastrophe facing both our citizens and our natural environment. I am pleased that I was in turn able to secure this funding from Albany, and I applaud the Governor and my colleagues in the Legislature for recognizing its necessity.”

North Tonawanda Mayor Austin Tylec said, “On behalf of the entire city, I want to express my gratitude for Assemblyman Conrad’s quick response to this gravely concerning issue. Without a fully functional Wastewater Treatment Plant, the city’s property owners and residents, as well as the Niagara River would suffer devastating consequences. This $5 million will go a long way to getting the facility back to where it needs to be – and if it weren’t for Assemblyman Conrad’s support, we would have gotten nothing from the 2022-23 state budget for this plant. I commend the New York State Legislature for adopting a budget that will save us from a plant breakdown, create a financial cushion for our taxpayers, and help us build the future of North Tonawanda.”