Jacob Chris Pole outlines White Lakes joint water project; intake rated for 1,800 gpm and 0.8 MGD treatment plant planned

Jacob Chris Pole, the project presenter, told the White Lakes City Council on Monday that the first phase of the joint water project includes a new raw-water intake at Warner Square and a modular surface-water treatment plant sized at about 0.8 million gallons per day.

“The raw-water intake could accommodate 1,800 gallons per minute,” Jacob Chris Pole said during a detailed presentation of the design and construction method. He described a 24-foot-diameter reinforced concrete intake (a "queson" structure) with two pumps installed and space for a third pump for future White Lakes use, a roughly 120-foot intake line to the lake, and a 16-inch raw water main running back to the treatment plant.

The presentation said the initial bid opening came in at “roughly around 34 and a quarter million,” a figure the presenter said exceeded available funding. After value engineering work, the project returned to bid and the presenter reported the second bid figure as "294" in the meeting record and said the effort produced roughly $5 million in savings.

Why it matters: the plant and intake are intended to serve White Lakes and partner communities in the East Range water board, replacing or supplementing existing supply and creating a shared treatment facility and common operations space. Council members repeatedly raised funding and procurement questions because the project’s size exceeds local resources and will require outside capital or long-term financing.

Construction details and schedule Jacob described how crews built the intake by forming and sinking concrete rings in 10-foot lifts, installing extensive rebar, sealing the structure and removing accumulated muck. He outlined the micro-tunneling and 36-inch steel-casing work used to push intake sleeves out to the lake and showed photos and drone footage of pre-cast panels and buried tanks at the treatment site.

The treatment facility is being built in a modular fashion, Jacob said, with backwash, chlorine contact, sedimentation and filtration tanks sized to serve all four partner communities. He noted the backwash tank was sized to minimize future additions if partners join later, and that much of the underground valving and piping was installed before concrete pours.

Procurement and cost control options Jacob told the council that phase one used a traditional design–bid–build model but that for the White Lakes portion of phase two staff are evaluating a Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) approach. He explained CMAR involves hiring a construction manager during design to produce a guaranteed maximum price, participate in value engineering, and manage trade packages such as dirt work, electrical and mechanical subcontracting.

“Bringing a construction manager on during the design phase gives you price certainty earlier and allows for value engineering that can lock in a price while the design is still flexible,” Jacob said.

Council members asked about timing and next steps; Jacob said the team is aiming to have the system online around April–May (as reported in the presentation) and noted there is still time to incorporate a CMAR into later phases while financing is finalized.

Funding and next steps The presentation emphasized a funding gap and the need to lock funding sources before advancing final design and procurement. Staff also asked for permission to develop a marketing package (one-pagers, poster boards and short testimonial videos) to help present the funding case to state and federal representatives; the council later approved that permission.

The council did not take final procurement action at the meeting; staff will return with additional financial details and, if directed, CMAR options for the White Lakes portion of phase two. The council agreed to review any drafts of marketing materials before distribution.