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Fire chief outlines hydrant expansion, recycled-hydrant savings and water system goals
Summary
Fire Chief Anthony told the Corrales council the village has 66 hydrants and roughly 18,000 feet of pipe and outlined plans to expand mains, adopt a yellow bollard standard, repurpose recycled hydrants to save money and pursue connections to improve system recovery.
Fire Chief Anthony gave a detailed presentation on the village27s hydrant and water-main program, describing existing mains, future pipe routes and operational goals for the system.
Anthony said the village currently has about 66 hydrants and roughly 18,000 feet of pipe in the ground. He said the village repurposed hydrants removed during Albuquerque construction and rebuilt internal parts to save roughly $5,000 per unit, which allowed the department to extend pipe further with those cost savings. "We have a total of 66 hydrants in Corrales," he said; "each fire hydrant we try to shoot that we get 1000 gallons per minute based on our fire pumps, and we're currently meeting that standard."
The chief mapped proposed main extensions to reach Corrales Road where feasible, described licensing agreements with the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District (MRGCD) for easements, and noted challenges such as sandy soils that slow pipe installation (contractors progress "about 40 to 60 feet a day"). He also described a proposed village standard for painting bollards bright yellow with reflective bands to protect hydrants and make them more visible following an on-site accident where a bollard prevented more serious damage.
Anthony presented asset estimates: about $660,000 in hydrants and fittings plus roughly $1.8 million for pipe at an approximate $100 per linear foot, totaling about $2.46 million in water-system assets (figures presented as staff estimates). He discussed plans to link the rec center system to improve recovery (rec center well producing ~400 gpm) and described temporary use of nonpotable ditch water for fire suppression as an emergency measure, stressing it would not contaminate drinking supplies.
Next steps: the village will continue pipe installations in the currently funded segments and explore longer-range projects such as a larger tank and more mains, subject to funding and right-of-way constraints. Councilors asked technical questions about connections to regional utilities and system recovery times; staff agreed to provide further engineering details as projects advance.
Source: Chief Anthony27s presentation and council questions recorded in the meeting transcript.
