Sharpsville council will hold a special workshop meeting to review alternatives for the borough's water treatment plant.

The meeting is set for 7 p.m. Thursday in the lecture room at Sharpsville High School.

Borough Manager Mike Wilson said council will look at different options for building a new water plant.

He said there's nothing wrong with the current plant; it's meeting or exceeding all current regulations.

"But it's also a 50-year-old plant," he said.

Upgrading the plant or building a new one has been a topic of discussion the last several years.

In October 2000, council revealed that Consumers Pennsylvania Water Co. had offered to buy the plant. In March 2001, council decided not to sell the plant, but acknowledged that it would need to be upgraded or rebuilt in the near future.

Also in March 2001, the Sharon accounting firm of Black, Bashor and Porsch and Killam Associates Consulting Engineers, Warrendale, Pa., presented preliminary cost estimates for renovating, expanding or building a new plant. At that time, it would have cost about $1.8 million to renovate, $2 million to expand and $3 million to build a new plant.

Wilson said council will discuss current cost estimates at Thursday's meeting.

The plant, which puts out about 1 million gallons of water a day, serves the borough and a portion of South Pymatuning Township, including Dean Dairy Products Co. and about 150 homes. The average customer pays about $20 a month.