Egg Harbor City dedicates water treatment plant to longtime council member

Jun 29, 2023

New Jersey American Water on Saturday dedicated the water treatment plant in Egg Harbor City to Ed Dennis, the former Egg Harbor City councilman who was instrumental in bringing the state-of-the-art water and wastewater facility to the city.

New Jersey American Water dedicated the water treatment plant in Egg Harbor City to Ed Dennis, the former Egg Harbor City councilman who was instrumental in bringing the state-of-the-art water and wastewater facility to the city.

New Jersey American Water dedicated the water treatment plant in Egg Harbor City to Ed Dennis, the former Egg Harbor City councilman who was instrumental in bringing the state-of-the-art water and wastewater facility to the city.

EGG HARBOR CITY — Without Ed Dennis’ commitment to the community, the city wouldn’t of had its state-of-the-art water treatment plant on Philadelphia Avenue.

Which is why New Jersey American Water, the city’s water and wastewater utility company, decided to dedicate the facility to Dennis. He was the former city council president who pushed for the new establishment to be built and oversaw its construction until its inception in 2013.

“I tried to do the right thing for the citizens,” said Dennis, who noted he was “very emotional” on Saturday at the dedication ceremony where a couple dozen friends, family, Mayor Lisa Jiampetti, former city officials, and members of New Jersey American Water honored him with a plaque that would be placed on the front of the water treatment building.

Plans to build the 12,000-square-foot building at 717 Philadelphia Avenue started before the plant won a $7 million federal financial package of grants and loans in 2007, when former Mayor Joseph Kuehner was in office.

Dennis said the city needed to update the water system that served thousands of residents. The system was over a 100 years old and couldn’t keep up with state standards.

If the city wanted to invest in updates, it would have to dramatically increase water rates for customers, Dennis said. He also mentioned since the 2016 Flint Michigan water crisis, the cost for water treatment operations have also increased.

“Water and wastewater management gets more complex every day,” said Mark McDonough, president of New Jersey American Water. “Microplastics, PFAs ... it gets to be too much for smaller towns and municipalities to take care of. So American Water is the solution to that.”

With American Water’s $21.8 million purchase of the system in 2021 thanks to state’s Water Infrastructure Protection Act, the city was able to do that.

Not only did American Water update the city’s water infrastructure, but they were able to offer customers a lower, more stable water rate, as well as cleaner water, McDonough said.

The plant has three tanks equipped with 600-gallon-per-minute gravity sand filters that filter out microplastics, iron and other harmful chemicals from the city’s water. It also has a lab where water can be tested, two 75,000-gallon holding tanks for treated water and other amenities.

Dennis’ vision to build the plant was the driving factor of the project’s completion. His role in helping American Water run the plant was also essential, McDonough said.

“Ed has been an outstanding leader,” said Jiampetti, who noted Dennis was born and raised in Egg Harbor City and served on the city council from 1972 to 2016). “He had a vision for redevelopment in Egg Harbor City. He’s the reason why we have a revitalization in Egg Harbor City.”

Jiampetti said Dennis was the reason the city has Cedar Creek High School, along with a list of other accolades.

Dennis said he couldn’t have gotten the water treatment plant in the city on his own. He thanked his former fellow city councilmen and other city officials, like Kuehner, who were instrumental in the process.

“Part of city council’s responsibility is looking forward, and how to best serve future generations,” said Dennis, now retired. “I’m honored and happy to serve residents.”

Contact Selena Vazquez:

609-272-7225

[email protected]

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