Public Utilities Director Shawn Pennell announces retirement

After 30 years of service to the Hickory community, City of Hickory Public Utilities Director Shawn Pennell will officially retire on May 31. 

“I am extremely appreciative to all the coworkers that I have had the opportunity to work with over the last 30 years. As a team, the City has made many significant improvements in utilities to serve the citizens of the Greater Hickory Metro Area,” said Pennell. “Now I plan to spend a little more time with my wife, Andrea, and our three girls, Teagan, Reid, and Oriana, helping them in the next phases of their lives.”  

Pennell started working for the City of Hickory Public Services Department in June 1994, making traffic signs and markers before transitioning to electrical and maintenance work. He then moved to Public Utilities, serving as Collections Manager for over a decade. He was promoted to Environmental Manager and then to Assistant Public Services Director, overseeing Public Utilities, in July 2017. Pennell became Public Utilities Director in November 2020.

During his tenure with the City of Hickory, Pennell has been involved in many notable projects and infrastructure investments for public utilities. He oversaw the construction of the Northwest Wastewater Treatment Facility, the Hickory-Catawba Wastewater Treatment Facility, and a new one-million-gallon elevated water tank on Springs Road. 

Pennell spearheaded significant enhancements to the City’s water treatment operations, including the conversion from chlorine gas to sodium hypochlorite generation and replacement of the treatment facility’s emergency generator. These efforts improved operational efficiencies while lowering costs and safeguarding the community.

He led extensive water and sewer infrastructure replacements within the City’s Central Business District as well as in the Murray, Geitner, and Henry River basins. He also managed the City’s $37 million project to build the new Henry Fork Biosolids Facility, which is currently nearing completion. 

As part of the City’s bond program, he served as the project manager for the Riverwalk segment of the Hickory Trail and for Trivium Corporate Center, a 378-acre Class A business park developed by the City of Hickory and Catawba County. 

Pennell was also instrumental in designing the water and sewer infrastructure needed for Microsoft’s $1 billion investment toward four data centers in Catawba County.

“As public utilities director and project manager for several major City investments, Shawn has played an important role in facilitating Hickory’s economic growth and enhancing the quality of life for Hickory residents, visitors, and customers. He has been a great steward of our most valuable natural asset — the Catawba River,” said City Manager Warren Wood.

Pennell has served as the City of Hickory’s primary representative for the Catawba-Wateree Water Management Group, which works to identify, fund, and manage projects that help preserve, extend, and enhance the capabilities of the Catawba-Wateree River Basin to provide water resources for human needs, while maintaining the ecological integrity of the waterway.

Pennell has also been an active member of several professional organizations, including NC One Water (formerly the North Carolina Section of the American Water Works Association) and the North Carolina Waterworks Operators Association. 

Under Pennell’s leadership, the City of Hickory has earned numerous water quality awards from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. 

Mayor Hank Guess commented on behalf of the Hickory City Council, “We greatly appreciate Shawn’s dedication to serving Hickory residents and customers over the years. His commitment to providing quality products and services to Hickory’s water and sewer customers, both residential and commercial, has always been unmatched.”