Wasilla plans a wastewater overhaul

The City of Wasilla is developing a 20 year wastewater master plan that would replace the city's patchwork of septic systems, built in the 1980s, with a modern, centralized wastewater infrastructure network, according to a report from the National League of Cities.

The plan responds to Wasilla's rapid growth. The city is one of the fastest growing small cities in the nation, and its existing septic based system cannot support the density already arriving along the Parks Highway corridor and in the city core. Without centralized infrastructure, developers face hard limits on how much they can build, including restrictions on vertical construction.

City planners say the modernization would reduce failing septic tanks and backup risks while giving developers more room to build upward instead of outward. A centralized system would also improve water quality in local waterways and give the city more predictable utility operations.

The 20 year plan is intended to lay the groundwork for Wasilla's next phase of growth, shifting the city from a spread out commuter town toward a denser, more urban hub as new commercial projects continue to expand across the Mat-Su Valley.