Bow Selectmen press for updated cost estimates and design options for northern water extension and Hooksett interconnection

Selectmen and staff spent the bulk of the April 8 meeting reviewing a multi‑year plan to extend Bow’s municipal water service north along Route 3A to Bow Mills and Bow Junction and to explore an interconnection with Hooksett’s water system.

The engineering team explained why the town is reconsidering the project’s scope and delivery approach as cost estimates have risen since the plan’s first feasibility work. Nick, a DuBois & King project engineer, told the board the original waterline estimate used when the TIF (tax increment financing) district was created had been about $4.3 million for the main extension, and that overall project totals now exceed earlier figures. “The existing Bow municipal water system is at capacity,” Nick said. “It was designed for a million gallons per day.” He said a combination of higher construction costs and the need for additional storage and pressure management has made the project more complex.

Why it matters: the northern water extension is tied to the Town’s economic development plan inside two TIF districts. The development program assumed new municipal water would unlock property development, capture new tax value inside the TIF, and help cover bond costs for infrastructure. As estimates have grown, Selectmen asked staff and engineers to re‑examine lower‑cost alternatives and funding…