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Council approves contingency for Foothills water‑tank rehabilitation after staff flags advanced corrosion
Summary
Folsom staff described severe corrosion and paint delamination during inspections of elevated tanks and the council approved three resolutions adding contingency and design work to the Foothills tank rehabilitation project to address structural repairs and safety upgrades.
Marcus Yasutaki, the city’s utilities director, told the council inspections revealed advanced corrosion, metal loss and paint delamination inside several storage tanks and outlined recoating, structural welding, electrical and SCADA upgrades and safety work that staff now recommends.
“It’s fully delaminated,” Yasutaki said of some interior paint layers and described areas where metal I‑beams and girders showed significant deterioration. He explained that divers inspect below the waterline but that the top portions of tanks require dewatering and scaffolding to assess properly, and that Foothills No. 2 was removed from service for inspection while Foothills No. 1 remains in service to meet summer demand.
Staff estimated that building brand‑new tanks could cost roughly $1 million per million gallons of storage and that rehabilitating the existing tanks will be materially cheaper when spread across multiple tanks. The staff report requested an additional contingency from the water operating fund to cover worst‑case structural repairs, additional construction management and specialized welding and coating inspections.
Councilors moved and recorded roll calls on three related resolutions authorizing contingencies and additional design work (resolutions 11543, 11544 and 11545). Each motion passed on a recorded roll call with all present council members voting yes. Yasutaki said staff expects Foothills No. 2 to be back in service by May 1 and proposed returning in October to take Foothills No. 1 out of service for the same inspection and potential repairs.
The council’s vote authorizes staff to proceed with the additional contingency and design work described in the staff reports; the approved actions increase project flexibility to address the advanced corrosion observed during inspection.
