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Kanosh council hears major update on town well project and faces $23,000–$47,000 valve choice
Summary
Council heard a technical briefing on the town well project, including installation progress and a choice between a lower‑cost valve package (~$23,000) and a fuller solution (~$47,000). Staff said one valve is required to proceed with meters; council asked for revised firm pricing and noted loan and contingency limits.
Mayor Wenda Crabb convened the meeting’s infrastructure update as project staff reported steady progress on Kanosh’s new well building and outstanding work needed to place the system into service.
The project engineer explained crews are forming the building and preparing to set the pump through a pitless adapter that will carry water underground into the new facility. He said the town has two supply lines: a 14‑inch PVC main installed about 2003 and an older steel/ductile line that staff estimated could be 70 years old and is showing internal corrosion.
The engineer said the immediate constraint is valves and the ability to temporarily isolate pipe sections so meters and other work can be completed. “We need this valve in, so that we can get those meters in,” he said, adding that contractors will not work on the pipe until crews can safely shut it down.
Council members were presented with two cost packages. The speaker characterized the lower‑cost option as the practical minimum (the ‘Volkswagen’ approach) at about $23,000, and a more comprehensive set of replacements and deeper excavations (the ‘Cadillac’ approach) at about $47,000. “I would say Volkswagen for now,” the engineer said, while noting the Cadillac option would provide extra convenience and isolation points.
Council members asked for specificity and cautioned about spending contingency funds already allocated to the project. The project lead said a portion of the work (one valve that is already exposed by excavation) is necessary to proceed and that additional valves could be added later if funds remain. He also offered that the town could save roughly $20,000 by doing backfill work with town equipment.
The council did not take a final vote on the extra valve packages at the meeting; instead staff were directed to obtain revised, firm pricing and to prioritize the minimum valve work required to enable meter installation. The engineer said the town’s contingency for the well project is limited and that one of the necessary valve actions will likely proceed first.
The project update also reviewed risks tied to the older steel line: an exposed pipe section in a nearby ditch and valves that do not fully close. The engineer said some service connections remain tied to the older steel line, which complicates wholesale abandonment without further investigation.
Next steps: staff will get firm revised bids that reflect the excavation work and the council’s conditional preference for the less expensive package, while noting they would accept additional valve work if contingency and loan closing permit. The project manager will also coordinate with bond counsel to finalize the loan closing needed to fund the next pay request.
The council’s request for updated numbers and staff’s plan to proceed only with the minimum required work leaves the town positioned to complete meter installations promptly while preserving flexibility to expand valve work later if budget allows.
