Roosevelt County approves investigation into low Brockton water pressure, authorizes about $6,000

Roosevelt County officials voted at a special meeting to authorize investigative work to determine why residents in the north side of Brockton are experiencing low water pressure.

Chair introduced the item and said the investigation will "look into" the system; he estimated "it's gonna be approximately $6,000 to do some investigating work." John Bach, who described the county's assessment of the system, said "coming out of the tank, there's an 8 inch line, and then it reduces down to 6 inch line" where it connects to Dry Prairie. Bach said earlier troubleshooting by Les Scanlon found no restrained fittings and that the next step is to install restraints, remove the T and reducer and test the system to see whether that corrects the pressure. "If that doesn't cure it, then we'll move on to the next phase as far as looking at some, maybe some valves" he said.

Officials discussed operational impacts and public-notification needs. The board asked whether the work would require shutting off water for the community; Bach replied, "Yes. It will be shut off for for 1 day." He said he will coordinate with Sam and send notices and that staff would double-notify residents. Board members also discussed fire-safety precautions: a member urged ensuring water availability given current dry, windy conditions, and officials noted a tender truck is available in Brockton and that a hydrant upright near the tank "will still be on" and cannot be shut off, leaving a nearby hydrant available during the work.

The motion to proceed with the investigative work passed on a voice vote. The board said it will set a date for the work soon and try to complete the project before ground freeze-up later in the year. Officials did not record a roll-call tally in the transcript; the motion was announced as passed by voice vote.