Kingston Springs settles Riverkeeper lawsuit as sewer sale decision remains on hold

After nearly two years of litigation over its troubled wastewater system, the Town of Kingston Springs has reached a settlement with Tennessee Riverkeeper, ending one chapter in the town's ongoing sewer saga while officials continue weighing whether to sell the utility altogether.

The Kingston Springs Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the settlement during its July 16 meeting, authorizing Town Attorney Tim Potter to execute a consent decree with Tennessee Riverkeeper. The nonprofit environmental organization sued the town in federal court over wastewater permit violations stemming from problems at the town's lagoon system.

Potter said the agreement largely mirrors the corrective actions the town has already agreed to complete under a separate enforcement order with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC).

"The Riverkeeper matter was put in abeyance while we initiated an agreed commissioner's order with TDEC," Potter said. "The TDEC matter is complete, and this final commissioner's order was signed and entered."

Under the settlement, Kingston Springs will pay $16,309.50 in attorney's fees to Tennessee Riverkeeper. Potter told commissioners that amount was significantly less than the town could have faced had the case continued.

Vice Mayor Mike Hargis praised Potter's work negotiating the agreement.

"It could have been six or seven figures, and to get it down to $16,000 is walking on the water in my book," Hargis said.

Mayor Todd Verwoven echoed those comments.

"Our town couldn't survive a $2 million lawsuit," Verwoven said. "We're just really thankful for all the work you did on that."

While the Riverkeeper lawsuit will remain under federal court oversight until all required work is completed, Potter said the settlement simply requires the town to fulfill the obligations it has already accepted through TDEC.

Sewer repairs continue

Town officials also provided an update on the extensive repairs underway at the wastewater treatment facility.

City Manager John Lawless said contractors are making steady progress replacing the lagoon liner that failed and led to many of the violations cited by TDEC.

The lagoon has been drained while crews remove accumulated sludge before installing a new liner. The project has taken longer than expected because groundwater seepage complicated excavation, but Lawless said the work remains on schedule despite roughly a one-month delay.

"They're about 60 to 70 percent completed pulling the sludge out," Lawless said.

Once the sludge is removed, contractors will remove the existing liner before engineers evaluate the lagoon and install a system beneath the new liner designed to prevent the gas buildup that caused the original liner to bubble and fail.

A second project rehabilitating manholes throughout the sewer system is also progressing.

Lawless said contractors expect to rehabilitate more manholes than originally anticipated while also completing improvements designed to reduce inflow and infiltration — groundwater that enters the sewer system during wet weather.

"The numbers that we're seeing look promising," Lawless said. "It's trending in the right direction."

Potter said the town has already paid a reduced civil penalty of $20,700, while more than $116,000 in additional penalties will be waived if the town completes all required improvements.

Lawless estimated the required work should be completed by the end of this year.

Sewer sale remains under review

Commissioners also received answers to questions submitted to Central States Water Resources, the private utility company that has proposed purchasing Kingston Springs' sewer system.

No action was taken on the proposed sale.

Potter said one of the biggest remaining questions is whether the town can transfer its obligations under both the TDEC order and the federal consent decree if a sale occurs before the corrective action plan is complete.

"I don't have a good answer about the assignability of those orders," Potter said. "It would make it cleaner... to do what we need to do and get it closed before we enter into a sale."

Several commissioners questioned whether the value of the sewer system has increased since requests for proposals were first issued, citing the ongoing repairs and improvements.

Mayor Todd Verhoven suggested the town may want to revisit the sale process after repairs are complete.

Potter agreed the town could reject the previous proposals and seek new bids once the corrective work is complete, noting the sewer system is in a much different condition than when the original proposals were submitted.

The Board of Commissioners took no action regarding the potential sale, leaving the issue for future discussion after additional repairs and state oversight are complete.