City workers will start preliminary repairs to water lines for the Cedar Creek water treatment plant after council members approved the idea this morning.

Though construction for the plant doesn't break ground until the summer, public utilities employees must begin a series of water main improvements to accommodate the flow of water to the area.

"This is phase one. There are several other phases in the future we'll have to upgrade for water to be pumped into the distribution system," said Matt Henderson, the project manager for Cedar Creek in the public utilities engineering department. "This project is designed in-house by the public utilities staff, and the City Council must authorize us to start the design and cover staff salaries and some easement and land acquisition."

Though the project is a separate one from the Cedar Creek pre-construction services approved by the council on Oct. 14, it's necessary to start construction next year.

"In that area of the county, we have smaller water mains, and we're basically plopping down a new treatment plant in the middle of nowhere," Henderson said. "To get the water into the system, we have to extend larger water mains."

The council approved $150,000 for salaries and phase one changes at today's work session, allowing public utilities staff to immediately begin to design and fit the water lines for changes.

"Most people in the city and county agree this is a much needed project that's going to help the full community," council member George Wangemann said. "It's the biggest project financially since the Linwood Waste Water Treatment Plant."

The water main improvements were anticipated and fall outside of the expenses that council members set aside for the treatment plan construction, Public Utilities Director Kelly Randall said.

"All of these projects were anticipated in the regular extension program, but they will be necessary if this plant has to operate for long periods of time to get the full value out of the plant," he said. "We're moving the improvements closer in time, which is similar to moving the plant closer in time."

Once complete, the $27 million treatment plant will feature the latest technology to treat waste.

"This plant is pretty crucial and it's going to be state of the art," Randall said. "It's not gold-plated. We're trying to keep the costs down, but it will be state of the art with the latest membrane technology."

The Cedar Creek reservoir, located in East Hall, is the only backup supply of water in the county if U.S. District Court Judge Paul Magnuson holds to his ruling that Lake Lanier isn't an authorized source of drinking water.

In July 2009, Magnuson gave Georgia three years to negotiate the management of Lanier, have Congress reauthorize the reservoir or go back to withdrawal numbers equal to those in the mid-1970s.

Though the Cedar Creek water treatment plant was planned for several years down the road, city officials decided to move forward with plans to build the plant by July 2012 to prepare for the possibility of Magnuson's ruling.

However, the city can't currently treat the water because the county has the permit to the water.

City and county officials have been at odds for months over which entity has control of the water in Cedar Creek and the financial details of its inclusion in a larger system with the proposed Glades Reservoir, which the county plans to build.

City Council members and county commissioners agreed to mediation in January to determine how to best move forward with both projects.

In October, council members approved a construction manager at-risk for the treatment plant project.

Brasfield & Gorrie submitted the lowest bid of $50,000 for pre-construction services to help complete design plans for the water treatment plant and find subcontracting services.

About 30 percent of designs for the treatment plant are complete, and public utilities officials will come forward with a construction contract in June, Henderson said.