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Public works seeks 8 water-and-irrigation positions, cites high line‑break rate and deferred pipe work
Summary
Water Resources Director Jeff Barnes proposed eight full‑time hires for FY26 to reduce overtime, respond to emergencies, bring construction work in house and accelerate pipe and hydrant replacements; presentation included infrastructure metrics, AMI rollout and plans to fund hires through growth, cost savings and reallocation of AMI capital.
Jeff Barnes, Director of Water Resources, told the Nampa City Council that the water and irrigation division will ask for eight full‑time employees in FY26 to reduce emergency overtime, expand an in‑house construction crew, and support operations and startup of irrigation stations.
Barnes described the division’s scale and vulnerabilities: 33 staff in the water and irrigation unit, about 73,000 domestic and irrigation connections, roughly 1,200 miles of water pipe, 6,300 fire hydrants, and a recent tally of 167 line breaks this year. He said crews spend about two‑thirds of their time responding to emergency breaks and that high turnover and…
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