Regional Panel Backs $32.8 Million State Grant for Richmond Water Plant Filter Upgrade

The Richmond Regional Water Workgroup has recommended that $32.8 million in state funding go toward improvements at the city's main water treatment plant, as members raised questions about deadlines and whether the grant rules were being followed.

The one-time grant is earmarked for a filter upgrade at the plant off Douglasdale Road. The project is expected to cost about $43.8 million in total, with nearly $11 million of the remainder coming from money collected from ratepayers in the city and the surrounding region.

Henrico County Manager John Vithoulkas, a workgroup member, moved to approve the recommendation at a Sept. 11 meeting. He described the approval as "pending" assurances from state officials that the project satisfies the grant requirements in Virginia's budget. Scott Morris, Richmond's public utilities director, said the city is confident it has done everything correctly and supports the motion.

Vithoulkas asked officials from the Virginia Department of Health and Attorney General Jay Jones' office to attest that the process complies with the "Drinking Water Improvement" line item in the state's spending plan for July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2028. That item sets aside $50 million in fiscal year 2027 for VDH to award one-time grants to localities upgrading or replacing drinking water infrastructure. The same language created the regional workgroup, which includes top officials from Richmond and Henrico, Chesterfield and Hanover counties.

The workgroup was formalized after flooding in January 2025 at the city's main treatment facility triggered a multiday water crisis across Greater Richmond. It has since worked on addressing systemic failures and critical errors that contributed to the disruption.

Some members voiced hesitation over whether the project respects a budget provision barring the grant from replacing other money set aside for plant projects. Dwayne Roadcap, director of the state's Office of Drinking Water and the workgroup's chair, said he is confident the project conforms to the budget language. He noted that the city's capital improvement plan budget would be lower if the grant were supplanting other funds, something members could readily check.

The city and VDH have already missed one budget deadline. They had until Aug. 31 to agree on a memorandum of understanding setting the terms of the grant. "The repercussions of that are not really clear, so we're actively working on it as fast as we can to get it accomplished," Roadcap told VPM News after the meeting. A Sept. 11 city press release said Richmond would work with the health department to finalize the agreement. It described the project as one that will replace the media for 22 filters and include structural repairs and architectural and electrical improvements.

Some members also questioned why the city sought bids before the state budget was finalized. Richmond was initially slated to receive at least $20 million of the $50 million, but VDH officials recommended $32.8 million. Morris and VDH officials said they had discussed the potential funding for months before the budget was set. Asked by consultant Tanya Denckla-Cobb of the University of Virginia's Weldon Cooper Center whether proceeding was risky, Morris replied, "I think it's more of a risk not to do it." He added that no other plant project costing more than $20 million was ready for construction.

Vithoulkas said the practice was unfamiliar to him, since he could not legally issue a request for proposal without the money in hand, but said there would be no issue if the grant is not supplanting other funds. The concern appeared to ease after Roadcap said VDH had reached out to Richmond and other eligible localities to help plan their projects.

Morris said the city has until Oct. 6 to sign off on the notice to proceed with Clark Water, the company chosen for the valve upgrade project. City officials estimate that the improvements they want at the plant over the next decade would cost more than $1 billion. The workgroup must deliver an annual report on Nov. 1 to the governor, General Assembly leaders and local elected officials, detailing its findings, recommendations and use of state funding for the plant.