Steamboat Pilot & Today

Hayden — Hayden Public Works Director Frank Fox has determined that almost 25 percent of the town's treated water was lost in 2002.

This year, Fox estimated water loss at 29 percent, from the amount of water produced at the water treatment plant to the amount of water metered. Town Manager Rob Straebel said just 10 percent to 12 percent was considered the norm by water industry experts.

The Hayden Board of Trustees approved Thursday night to spend $2,500 for Civil Design Consultants to create a "Master Water Line Distribution Map." The map would be used to assist efforts in isolating water loss areas and would later be used as a reference for Public Works in locating water lines and possibly other utilities, said Mike Briskins, an engineer from CDC.

"This can be an ongoing map project," Briskins said. "The map could be built on to include sewer, irrigation, electric or gas."

Straebel said the map also would be a helpful reference in all of the town's future growth.

"It's a small price to pay for what we have to gain," Trustee Ken Gibbon said.

After town staff spends the remainder of the year working to identify suspected water-loss regions, Straebel said the town could hire a consultant next year to help identify the water loss more specifically.

In other water-related issues, the trustees agreed to work with Fox to draft a revision to a moratorium that prohibits county residences from tapping into town water mains.

When a county resident's April request to tap into town water was denied, Trustee Tim Frentress was asked to look into having a moratorium rewritten to allow residences outside of municipal boundaries to tap into town water mains.

The moratorium established in 1997 states that no one outside municipal boundaries tap into town water. Frentress proposed at the June 19 Town Board meeting that if the moratorium were to be rewritten, it should state that residences within 200 feet of a town water main could tap into the line under the supervision of the Public Works department.

The moratorium revision would not allow for taps into smaller, feeder lines.

Fox said he does not see a problem with the proposed revision, but he recommended each case be handled on a case-by-case basis and water lines be maintained by the owners all the way from the home to the water main.

Mayor Chuck Grobe agreed.

However, Straebel and Gibbon said they felt strongly that the moratorium was a good thing because it is unquestionable.

"I think city water is a privilege," Gibbon said. "I'm wondering about the guy who lives 300 feet off the main. Are we going to make an exception for him?"

But after further discussion, the trustees agreed out-of-town water taps would probably not be a common thing, and agreed to draft a revision.

-- To reach Nick Foster call 871-4204

or e-mail nfoster@steamboatpilot.com