Rochester officials hear water-system master-plan update as demand projections rise

Rochester utility staff told the city council at a July 27 study session that the city’s water-system master plan will guide decisions about long-term source water, treatment and financing after a multi-month modeling effort.

Todd Warmstrom, assistant general manager of maintenance for Rochester Public Utilities, said the city currently withdraws “about 5,000,000,000 gallons a year” and that dry‑year planning projects that could grow to a little over 8,000,000,000 gallons annually by 2065. He emphasized that water system planning is done for drought conditions and that the master plan will include a conservation and reuse matrix to show which strategies reduce demand and at what cost.

Warmstrom said the study focuses on three things: the immediate challenges the system faces, the technical process for evaluating alternatives, and regulatory constraints. “There is already assumptions built into these numbers that we are going to achieve greater conservation than we are today,” he told the council, and staff expects to return in October with modeling results and conservation options.

The presentation also reviewed the groundwater and surface-water options the city is analyzing and the regulatory tests the Department of Natural Resources will apply when reviewing new wells or alternative sources. Council members pressed staff about the assumptions behind the demand projections and how the master plan will align with budget decisions in 2028–29.

The meeting produced no formal action; staff said the model results and a recommended path forward will be available later this year and will inform next year’s budget planning.