WEST FARGO - By fall, West Fargo could be sending about 1 million gallons of wastewater per day to Fargo, but it may have to use eminent domain to do so.

Dustin Scott, city engineer with Moore Engineering, said Monday, Feb. 19, that the city is in the process of securing easements for a pipeline that would carry wastewater underground from West Fargo to a Fargo treatment facility.

West Fargo's existing lift station near 12th Avenue is the regional station that collects the city's wastewater and pumps it to lagoons.

Under the new project, wastewater would be collected there but sent to Fargo via a pipeline that would go north from the lift station between the lagoons and Drain 21. The pipeline would then be placed near 19th Avenue North to carry the wastewater east to a regional wastewater treatment plant in Fargo.

In order to build the pipeline, the city needs to buy easements from all property owners, but not everyone is on board. Scott said most of the assessed land value was about $1,000 per acre and the city offered $5,000 per acre. For residential property, it offered the assessed value of 23 cents per square foot.

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After many of the landowners rejected the officer, Scott asked the city on Monday, Feb. 19, to begin a process that would eventually allow for eminent domain use. Eminent domain allows government agencies to take private property for public use.

City Administrator Tina Fisk said although it is not easy to move forward with eminent domain, it would be unfair to taxpayers to offer landowners more for easements.

"It's hard to turn around and tell the taxpayers we paid somebody 10 times more than what their land is worth," Fisk said.

Scott said landowners' objection was mostly about money, especially for farmland. Scott said many landowners that objected to the easement buyout are part of Reed Township, despite a town hall meeting last fall where landowners did not voice major objections.

"Things looked pretty promising after that meeting," Scott said.

The City Commission voted unanimously to move forward with condemnation processes at its Feb. 19 meeting.

"I think it is unfortunate we are at this stage already," Commissioner Duane Hanson said.

Although obtaining the easements may delay the project, Scott said construction should only take about 10 weeks, so the city may be able to start pumping wastewater to Fargo in October.

West Fargo officials considered expanding the lagoons, building its own treatment plant or partnering with Fargo, which they soon found would be the cheapest option.

After a public meeting for West Fargo residents in May 2017, the majority in attendance supported eliminating the lagoon system, which would need to be expanded to keep up with city growth. The lagoon system also emits a foul odor each spring.

Fargo, which has extra capacity in its water and sewage plants, has increasingly become the region's utility provider.

The city's plant already treats sewage for Horace, Reile's Acres, Highland Park, North River, Frontier, Prairie Rose, Briarwood, Oxbow and the Southeast Cass Sewer District.