Progress being made on new water tower; interest expressed in old tower

 The final ring of steel on the city’s newest 1 million gallon water tower is being attached and paint will be applied to the new northwest water tower during the month of September.

Jason Petersburg, of Veenstra & Kimm, told the Clear Lake City Council construction crews from Landmark Inc., of Fort Worth, Texas, are on schedule to complete the new tower in November of 2014. The total project cost is roughly $2.5 million.

 The new water tower has a 38-foot diameter by 76-foot tall, architecturally-designed, concrete column that supports a 70-foot wide by 40-foot tall steel bowl. The design is meant to be more aesthetically pleasing for the surrounding area and will also allow the City to realize a lower life cycle cost than other designs. The project will not only add additional storage, but it will also increase the water pressure for customers.
The new 1 million gallon tower will replace the old 250,000 gallon multi-legged steel water tower, which is located 600-feet to the west.
The old water tower, which was built in 1959, is scheduled to be demolished in the winter of 2015. However, neighbors in the Four Winds subdivision which sits just west of the old tower, say they have heard a buyer has expressed interest in turning the tower into a home.
Walt Muskovich spoke to the City Council Aug. 18, as a concerned resident of the Four Winds area. He said the majority of homeowners he has spoken to in the area are opposed to a plan to convert the old tower. He urged the Council to require an environmental impact study, addressing structure and paint issues, prior to making any decision to sell the tower.
After the Council meeting City Administrator Scott Flory said he was aware of interest in the old water tower. He noted the tower site is zoned public, so any plan to purchase it would require a change of zoning and ultimately a Board of Adjustment ruling for its use.