Edmond council members OK replacing one water tower and moving another - Oklahoman.com

Edmond council members OK replacing one water tower and moving another

Water upgrades will change Edmond residents' landscapes
Jack Money

EDMOND — Residents' landscapes will be changing as the community increases its ability to supply water without the help of Oklahoma City.

This week, members of the city council authorized designing a new water tower capable of holding 2 million gallons to replace a much smaller one that's been holding water near the campus of the University of Central Oklahoma for nearly 70 years.

They also authorized starting another project to move a 500,000-gallon water tower from its current home on Danforth Road between Kelly and Santa Fe avenues to a new location in northeast Edmond to meet growing needs for water there.

The two jobs together, costing nearly $11 million, will be paid for using water and wastewater system revenues paid to the city by residential and commercial customers.

Needed central Edmond water supply prompts decision to build a large tower

Steve Lawrence, Edmond's city engineer, said staff decided to move forward with building a larger water storage tower to serve central Edmond because of growing demands.

Lawrence said the new tower will replace a landmark that's been visible from many parts of town on top of a hill next to the University of Central Oklahoma since 1957.

The new tower will be identical to two others already in use and a third that is being built near W 33rd Street and Broadway. The $10 million project is being paid for up-front using a 30-year loan the city obtained through the Oklahoma Water Resources Board.

Lawrence said a decision was made to go with a 2-million gallon tank near UCO because it will allow the city to retire some other, smaller holding tanks earlier than what previously was planned.

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"We just get a lot more economy of scale," Lawrence said.

Within about 20 years, a new pump station and ground-level storage tank will be added to the site, replacing old units that will be removed when the larger tower is built.

City officials expect to bid out the job to take the old water tower, surface storage and pump station out early in 2024.

Second project recycles older tower to serve growing area of town

It will cost Edmond about $615,000 to relocate a tower located on the south side of Danforth Road at its intersection with Sherry Lane to land near the intersection of Lindberg Lane and Sorghum Mill Road (just west of Post Road).

The old, 500,000-gallon tower, built in 1982, currently sits empty and disconnected from the city's water distribution system.

The area where it would be moved, meanwhile, continues to grow as new homes and businesses are built.

Lawrence said the tower also will help protect its water distribution system from potential future failures in that part of town by helping to keep in-pipe pressures consistent.

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The tower will be disassembled at its existing location, then moved piece by piece to its new home where it will be put back together.

City officials expect the job will take between eight and 12 months to complete.

"We don't want to put a 2 million gallon tank out there now because there isn't enough demand," Lawrence said.