There's a storm brewing in northern Milton over water - but unlike the rest of the state, it's not over the lack of it. On Pritchard Mountain, water pressure is the issue.
The fight is over a proposed elevated water tank near the under-construction Hampshires subdivision, located west of Freemanville Road near the intersection of Mountain Road. If built, it would tower over existing homes in the area.
And that's what sets off Wayne Super. He lives less than 100 feet from the proposed site and has started an online petition to stop construction of the tank, which petitioners say will adversely affect properties. At press time, he had 71 signatures.
In its place, he proposes the construction of a low-rise pumping solution that will, according to himself and experts with whom he was worked, fulfill all the requisite safety requirements for adequate, reliable water service.
"We're trying to create a positive solution," he said. "We're not opposing something for safety."
Though Pritchard Mountain is really just a big hill, it is the highest point in the county, said Mike Rachelson, project manager for Fulton County.
That means the existing homes and those proposed for development in the area would be higher the 1,150 feet of elevation cap for water service without a gravity tank, said Chris Browning, Deputy Director of Public Works for the county. But Pritchard Mountain is a pretty small area.
"Therefore, the long-range plan was to serve that area using a separate pressure zone when the area developed," he said.
In 2005, the county entered into an agreement with developers who wanted to put homes at those areas of higher elevation than water service would allow. Under the terms, the builders put in a $3.7 million water booster system for temporary service until a tank could be constructed, said Browning.
So now, the plan is to build a 500,000-gallon tank with an overflow elevation - the maximum height of the water in the tank - 105 feet higher than the existing Freemanville Road tank to ensure no chance of failure. The tank simply uses gravity, no mechanical means that might fail.
The new tank would increase the available water pressure for most residents to about 60 pounds per square inch -- the county minimum -- and cost approximately $1.2 million. It will be housed on existing county-owned property beside the existing Freemanville Road tank.
Super said the 150-foot tank is an unnecessary and unpopular means of redundancy.
"We have reasonable reliability [with the low-rise solution], not perfection," he said. "There is a cost associated with perfection, and the constituents don't want it."
Super also said there are a number of other factors that could decrease the need for the high-rise tank. Many homes are on well water, for instance.
Browning countered and said that were the pumping station to burn down, there would be no water service to the homes that need it. And the county is not willing to risk that.
"The likelihood of a widespread water outage are much less when customers are served by a gravity water system," he said.
Labels: Fulton, Fulton County, water, Water Restrictions, Water Tower
# posted by
Brian Vanderhoff @ 2:42 PM
