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There are always things happening in our small community that many are not aware of. This month I have chosen to write about one such item that has been in the planning process for quite some time. This is something that many of us don’t think about and that we all take for granted. 

The town has been trying to do a major upgrade to its wastewater system. Wastewater is now the term that is generally used in place of sewer. Wastewater is the waterborne waste material of a community that includes all normal wastes from human activities such as toilets, bathtubs, showers, bathroom wash basins, clothes washers and laundry tubs.

All of the town’s current wastewater system is either pumped or gravity fed to our pumping facility near the Moravian cemetery. From the Moravian Cemetery the wastewater is pumped to our Wastewater Treatment plant (WWTP). The treatment plant is a series of four ponds called water stabilization ponds (WSP).

These WSP’s are large man-made basins. In each of these ponds the water is treated by natural occurring processes. The sunlight, wind, micro-organisms, and algae. This water is closely monitored by the Town of Hope Utility Department and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.

What the Town is looking to do is to essentially divide the town into two parts by installing a new pump station in Goshen Meadows and pump wastewater directly to the WWTP. By pumping directly to the plant while also relieving the strain on the Moravian pump station. This will be great for the town of Hope by eliminating overflows during heavy weather events and also the possibility for future expansion of the Town. This is a very expensive project, and we are expecting to hear about grant funding in the upcoming months and possibly begin as soon as this time next year. 

Below, I have included a copy of the project description that has been submitted. I would enjoy hearing your opinion and answering any questions you may have on this future project.

Having a favorable opinion could even help the town receive funding!

Goshen Meadows Lift Station and Force Main Project Description

The existing Goshen Meadows Lift Station is located just east of the Neal Drive and Shaefer Drive intersection and serves the Goshen Meadows and Liberty Place subdivisions, residences on Brookside Drive and Schaefer Drive, and the businesses located in Major's Center in Hope, Indiana. 

The existing Goshen Meadows force main pumps through a 6-inch diameter force main that reduces to a 4-inch diameter just behind the True Value Hardware Store. This force main discharges into the existing gravity sewer system that eventually discharges into the existing Moravian Lift Station located to the west of the Moravian Church adjacent to Haw Creek. The Moravian Lift Station frequently overflows since it does not have the capacity to handle peak wet weather flows from the Goshen Meadows Lift Station.  

To address the overflow issues at the Moravian Lift Station, the Town of Hope proposes to install a new force main from the Goshen Meadows Lift Station that routes directly to the wastewater treatment facility. This will alleviate the capacity issues at the Moravian Lift Station. 

In addition to these improvements, the force main that serves Miller's Merry Manor is to be rerouted to discharge into the gravity sewer system in the Goshen Meadows Lift Station's service area.  

The macerator at the WWTP will need to be upsized so that it can handle the flows from Moravian and Goshen Meadows.