Prattville to hold public hearing on Fay Branch outfall improvements

Prattville is set to ask the public for input on Fay Branch outfall improvements, a project the city is seeking to finance through Clean Water State Revolving Loan Funds. The hearing will be Thursday, July 9, 2026, at 6 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 101 W. Main Street, and the city says the meeting is meant to lay out the project and answer questions from residents.

The notice also says an Environmental Information Document has been prepared and can be reviewed at City Hall during normal business hours. Anyone seeking more information can call the Prattville City Clerk’s Office at 334-595-0120. That makes the meeting more than a routine formality: it is the point where city officials will have to explain what the outfall work is intended to fix and how much of the burden could fall on local taxpayers or sewer customers.

Fay Branch matters because Prattville’s floodplain materials identify it as one of the city’s major watercourses where flooding hazards exist. The city has participated in FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program since 1981, and its stormwater program has been operating under an ADEM MS4 permit that became effective May 9, 2022, and runs through May 8, 2027. Prattville’s 2025 MS4 annual report says crews screened 85 outfalls during the permit year, showing that drainage and discharge points are already under regular review.

That context gives the hearing real local weight for property owners along Fay Branch and in nearby drainage areas. Outfall improvements usually point to work at the point where stormwater or wastewater leaves a system and enters a creek or other waterway, so the project could affect runoff, water quality, and flooding conditions in the surrounding area. Residents pressing city officials will want to know whether the work is meant to reduce backups, improve compliance, or address visible erosion and drainage problems along the branch.

The borrowing details suggest the project is part of a larger wastewater buildout. A wastewater budget document lists $12.6 million in debt proceeds, including $3.5 million for Faye Branch construction, $9 million for Autauga Creek construction, and $100,000 in debt issuance costs. The same budget says current-year loan proceeds are expected to fund Faye Branch construction estimated at $10 million over fiscal years 2026, 2027 and 2028. A May 6, 2026, Wastewater and Stormwater Committee agenda also listed a Faye Branch Sewer Line Upgrade, an Autauga Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrade and a Wastewater Rate Study.

If the loan is delayed or does not move forward, the city’s broader sewer and stormwater schedule could slip with it, since the budget ties the borrowing to multiple years of construction. For Prattville, the key question is whether this financing plan will finally address a drainage and water-quality problem residents can already see, or simply postpone work that Fay Branch has needed for years.