Middleburg staff warn of tight water supplies, outline well repairs and grant request

Middleburg public works staff told the Town Council that the town’s groundwater supplies remain strained and described near-term fixes and grant requests to shore up capacity.

The update by water operations staff said average finished water production for the reporting period was about 37,000 gallons per day (roughly 4.2 million gallons for the month) and that the system continues to meet required sampling and monitoring. Staff emphasized the system has not returned to its pre-leak conditions: transducer monitoring shows some wells remain lower than before the leak and well levels have not tracked directly with recent rainfall.

“We got our transducers in the wells, and we’re keeping an eye on those,” Public Works staff member Vince said. He described that well-level plots show the water column moving close to the transducer repeatedly and noted that well 4 has been ‘‘acting up’’ since the leak. Vince described an upcoming replacement of well 4’s standpipe and pump, a plan to drop the pump from about 350 feet to roughly 500 feet, and a video inspection of the casing during work to check for fouling. The drop will also allow installation of a variable-frequency drive (VFD) or manual speed control to avoid drawing the well down while meeting customers’ needs.

Council members asked whether there is a simple conversion of rainfall to well recovery. Vince cautioned there is no reliable one-to-one rule: the town has not yet seen a consistent relation between short-term rainfall and well-level response, and the new transducer record only goes back to August.

Town staff also said the town has been delaying a broad, high-volume flushing program until well 4 is stable, to avoid further drawing down supplies. Localized flushing in problem areas such as around the fire station remains possible.

On wastewater, staff reported the treatment plant remains in compliance with permit sampling and that average daily discharge was a little over 100,000 gallons per day (about 3.1 million gallons for the month). Contractors have completed most CCTV inspection and line cleaning work; West Washington Street lines were reported in relatively good condition, while hot spots include East Washington, East Federal and J Street where commercial flows concentrate.

Danny Davis, town manager, told the council the utility budget includes a planned 3% rate increase and that staff will continue to study rate-structure alternatives through the coming year. He also said the draft capital plan includes just over $500,000 in transfers to the utility capital improvement program for water and sewer line maintenance, pump and blower replacements, and other projects. He noted a repaint of the Stonewall Court water tower is included for fiscal 2026, but that project could be deferred.

Davis said the town placed a grant request on the consent agenda seeking state funding targeted to getting Well 2 restored. “That’s primarily or specifically targeted to go to getting Well 2 back up and running,” Davis said. Staff explained Well 2 has not been running for some time; historical records suggest it produced strongly when in service (estimates discussed ranged from around 40–75 gallons per minute), but the old six-inch main serving the area holds sediment and needs careful flushing and inspection before Well 2 can be put back into service.

Staff added the town is hauling sludge from wastewater treatment to a regional facility and that sludge volumes have increased from the unusually low levels seen previously; they are reviewing operations and chemical use to reduce hauling costs where feasible.

The council did not take a separate vote on the water report itself tonight; the meeting’s consent agenda — which included a resolution supporting the grant request for Well 2 — was adopted earlier in the meeting.

The town will hold a public hearing on the proposed utility rate change in late May (May 22, as announced by staff) and staff said they will prepare materials explaining the drivers of the rates, conservation measures and the capital plan for the public hearing.

Ending: Council members asked staff to proceed with the well 4 repairs when parts arrive, to continue the CCTV review for sewer hot spots and to pursue the Well 2 grant application. Staff said they will return to council with progress reports and that large-scale flushing will be postponed until well 4 is reliably online.