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Prescott Valley targets older neighborhoods with low‑cost fire hydrant installs; tougher locations could cost up to $500,000 each
Summary
Utilities staff described a multi‑year fire hydrant installation program focused on older residential areas with undersized mains; the town has installed about 40 hydrants in four years and plans further installations using a roughly $150,000 annual budget for low‑cost sites, while more complex upgrades could cost substantially more.
Neil Wadsworth, town utilities staff, introduced a fire hydrant installation program that focuses on older residential neighborhoods where water mains are undersized or hydrants are widely spaced.
Andrew Powell, utilities engineer, reviewed the system maps and constraints, saying the town’s older central neighborhoods frequently have 4‑inch and smaller mains that “do not meet fire flow standards” and are often located in rear public utility easements that are not accessible in emergencies. Powell said the town has installed about 40 new hydrants during the last four years, funded with “an approximate budget of about a hundred and $50,000 annually.”
Powell described three cost scenarios for adding a hydrant: a low‑cost option (install on an existing 6‑inch or larger main in the right of way, avoid utility conflicts, typically about $15,000), a higher‑cost option (extend a back‑easement main into the right of way, estimated tens of thousands up to about $150,000), and a very high‑cost option (construct 100 feet or more of new 8‑inch line and multiple hydrants, which Powell estimated could range “a hundred and 50,000 to $500,000”).
Powell said the town prioritizes low‑cost installations that minimize underground utility conflicts and maximize fire flow per dollar, while cataloging more difficult locations for future work. He noted that options are constrained by underground utility conflicts, public utility easement access, and the size and location of existing mains.
Chief Darryl Terpak, chief fire marshal, described operational workarounds where hydrant coverage is inadequate: “Every station that we currently house has a water tender with it. So when a call kicks out, if it's in an area that has not enough water supply for us, we'll bring a water tender with us.” He added a typical tender carries “anywhere from 3 to 7,000 gallons of water.”
Council members praised the presentation and encouraged staff to post the slides for public information. Several council members asked whether upsizing mains could be coordinated with road projects; Wadsworth said the town has used road reconstruction projects to add or upsize mains and hydrants in the past, citing Sunset Lane and Florentine Lane as examples where new 8‑inch lines and hydrants were installed during paving projects.
No vote was taken; staff said they will continue the annual hydrant program, prioritize low‑cost installs to add the most hydrants quickly, and return with updates as projects proceed.
