The Crossville City Council recently held a work session to deliberate the potential merger of the city’s water and wastewater operations into the Cumberland Plateau Water Authority (CPWA).

City Attorney Randy York provided historical context, noting that water issues have occupied over half of the council’s meeting time since 2010. He explained that regulatory obstacles from the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) have taken raising the Meadow Park Lake dam off the table for the current council.

To proceed with the merger, the council must pass a resolution by July to place a referendum on the November ballot. This referendum would not directly finalize the merger, but would grant the council the authority to convey specific city properties—including acreage around Meadow Park Lake, Holiday Lake, and the water treatment facility—to the CPWA. York also reassured city utility workers that the merger would not result in layoffs or decreased compensation.

CPWA General Manager Jeff Dyer presented a financial and strategic analysis heavily favoring regionalization over an independent approach. The CPWA—which is already debt-free with $39.2 million in equity after absorbing three other regional utility districts—offers Crossville a way to mitigate rising infrastructure replacement costs, regulatory pressures, and growth demands. Currently, Crossville faces a projected $131.2 million capital program between FY2026 and FY2031.

Peterson modeled four scenarios and strongly recommended Scenario 2 (S2), which combines the CPWA merger with a deferred capital improvement plan that puts off the $60 million dam and reservoir expansion in favor of alternative regional supply solutions.

The financial benefits of the recommended merger scenario are substantial compared to the city remaining independent. Under S2, the cumulative water rate increase for customers over five years would be held to just 9.7% (with zero increases from FY2026 to FY2028), compared to a staggering 63.1% increase if the city remains independent and attempts the full capital plan. Furthermore, the merger would expand the immediate customer base to over 31,000, bringing a combined revenue of $23.3 million to absorb debt.

This keeps the peak debt per customer at a manageable $2,462, well below the $6,000 industry guideline, whereas the independent path would skyrocket to $9,237 per customer.

The presentation concluded with a recommended action for the City Council to vote on placing the public referendum on the agenda for June 9, 2026, framing the merger as a vital step for long-term water security, rate stabilization, and regional economic competitiveness.