The project to expand a sewage facility in Cody to accept waste from rural Park County is expected to finish next summer at a cost of just under $5 million. 

At a meeting last week, Park County commissioners approved a change order that increases the county’s cost by up to $310,000. That’s on top of the more than $2 million in federal Covid-era funds the county previously committed to the joint project. 

The City of Cody, which also paid its half of the project with ARPA funds, has tentatively agreed to pay the rest of the change order from lead contractor Sletten Construction. 

Cody Public Works Director Phillip Bowman said in his talks with the council, he’s confident the city will do its part, which he said would be $170,000-$200,000.  

“If we do get support by the board [of commissioners], we have a very strong likelihood of getting support from our city council on that,” Bowman said. 

Park County Engineer Brian Edwards added that the city and county might get some money back, as at this point nearly $200,000 of the contingency fund remains unspent. 

Both said they don’t want to use the contingency funds for this change order. Instead, they want to plan for the worst case scenario and have contingency funds available to solve smaller funding issues in the project.

The project has been delayed slightly due to a need for extra electronic equipment. It’s now set for substantial completion in early June and final completion roughly a month later. 

When it’s complete, the expanded Cody sewage treatment facility will be able to accept waste collected from county residents with septic systems. Then, the county will be able to reclaim its existing sewer lagoons and put up what could be a valuable piece of land on the edge of Cody city limits for sale.

The county lagoons have been in operation on Rocky Road just outside Cody for at least 50 years and commissioners were faced with either significantly improving the lagoons or stopping the service. In 2023, commissioners determined to work with Cody to be able to handle county sewage as well, as the city has recently upgraded its system. 

“In the long run it’s really going to save the county and the taxpayers,” Commissioner Lloyd Thiel said.

The ponds will ultimately be self-sustaining, funded by fees charged to the haulers (and, in turn, their customers) who use the city’s facility. Bowman said Tuesday the public works department has just begun work on a new wastewater master plan that will, among other things, examine what rate to charge for sewage. He said Cody’s current rate is lower than most other cities in the region.