Update 2026-01-01: Hightower Creek still dirty; Alapaha River clean 2025-12-31.

The Valdosta City Council approved two sole-source vendor items among seven water and wastewater items at its December 11, 2025, Regular Session.

A sole-source vendor is a single point of failure, and sometimes a very expensive one, as we saw with the Valdosta drinking water meter sole-source issue 2025-10-19.

In that case Valdosta had to completely replace 25,000 water meters.

Sole-source vendors can also be expensive, due to lack of competition.

Valdosta fixing sewer system problems before they break, Still, sole-source vendors are a problem @ VCC 2025-12-11

The sole-source vendor items were 6.d) about the Force Main Pump Stations, and 6.d) about a new Decanter Unit for the Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant, among these seven water and wastewater items:

• 5.e) about the Knights Academy Road and Goodyear Lift Stations,
• 5.f) also about the Knights Academy Road Lift Station,
• 5.g) about cost recovery for those same two Lift Stations,
• 5.h) about the Barack Obama Boulevard North Widening Project, with an agreement with LEA for a 16-inch water main,
• 6.b) about emergency repairs at the Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Station (WWTP),
• 6.c) about rebuilding pumps at the Gornto and Remer Master Lift Stations on the Force Main, and
• 6.d) about a new Decanter Unit for the WWTP.