Nov. 21, 2007
Contact: Art Nuñez, water/wastewater treatment dir., (480) 312- 8724
Scottsdale Honored As a Crown Community:
Chaparral Water Treatment Plant earns national award
The city of Scottsdale was recently presented the 2007 America’s Crown Community award for the Chaparral Water Treatment Plant by American City & County magazine.
The award recognizes outstanding leadership in local government. Recipients of the annual awards are selected by the editors of American City & County, based on nominations submitted by the magazine's audience, municipal leaders and associations. Any local government initiative completed within the last year can qualify for the awards, including those that repair infrastructure, introduce new technology, improve quality of life for residents or beautify public places. Projects are judged based on their uniqueness, short- and long-term value to the community and effective/innovative financing. Scottsdale is one of only six cities to receive the award this year.
The Chaparral Water Treatment Plant won as a result of the innovation of the plant and its benefit to the community.
“The Chaparral Water Treatment Plant is a project about community connectivity. The design of the plant allows it to connect the adjacent neighborhood to nearby Chaparral Park, rather than separate the two spaces,” said Mayor Mary Manross. “I am proud of the accomplishments of this project and I am pleased to receive an award that recognizes Scottsdale’s ingenuity.”
The plant, which produces 30-million-gallons-a-day, sits on a nine acre site and is a technical marvel. A conventional plant of this production capacity would have required a footprint two to three times larger. Instead, the city used state-of-the-art membrane technology to compress the footprint of the plant leaving room to extend nearby Chaparral Park with additional amenities, such as an Off-Leash Area. In addition, the plant also serves an educational purpose because it offers a Xeriscape Demonstration Garden where residents and park visitors can learn about low-water use landscape.
The award was presented to Mayor Manross on Nov. 15 as part of a special awards ceremony at the annual National League of Cities convention held in New Orleans, Louisiana.
A profile of each city’s winning project will be features in the December issue of American City & County magazine, which is published monthly and has been in publication since 1909. For more information on American City & County magazine visit http://americancityandcounty.com/.