(Spirit Lake)– Meeting in special session Thursday, the Spirit Lake city council reviewed a detailed engineering report on a proposed expansion of the city’s water treatment plant. The Iowa DNR has issued a consent degree ordering the city to upgrade its plant to meet growth the city has already experienced and will see in the future. The state says the city must meet the decree in order to supply funding to put up a new water tower on the city’s south side.
The report included a 10.4 million dollar upsizing of the city’s water treatment plant, tripling its capacity by 2008. It mentioned other, less costly options which officials say would be short term solutions to the problem. They include doing nothing at all, storing treated water in underground aquifers and pumping it at times of peak demand; or going together with a neighboring town’s water treatment plant, such as Central Water which serves Arnolds Park and Okoboji, for a joint project. Engineers with Howard R. Green suggested the city pursue the 10.4 million dollar expansion project, saying it best meets the city’s long range needs.
But council members say they want more information first on the other options. Steve Balm said going with a shorter-term, less-expensive option would give the city time to budget for the longer-range solution. Councilman Jeff Thee agreed, saying he, too, wants the other issues more thoroughly researched before making a decision.
The city’s Utility Committee was directed to research the various options and to meet with representatives of the city of Orleans to see what the city plans to do for water once it’s contract with Spirit Lake expires in 2008. They’ll also meet with representatives of Central Water to see what the timeframe is for improvements to their plant.
The city will also research alternatives to fund the new water tower should they decided not to apply for state funding so as to bypass the state’s consent decree.
Meanwhile, Dean Dodds, Superintendent of the city’s Water Department, warned the city may be forced to implement yard and garden watering restrictions this summer.
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