Town, school board discuss water needs

By Chelsea McNerney-
Martinez
DEL NORTE— The Del Norte Town Board and members of the Del Norte School Board in conjunction with Superintendent Christopher Burr and School Civil Engineer Wade Henderson met to discuss the school’s plans for a Ninth Street extension for the purpose of improving water lines and water pressure for the new school.
Henderson explained to the town board how the new school building will require a minimum 1,453 gallons per minute of flow on the school site in addition to the four fire hydrants to meet the fire code requirements. The best hydrant on the property currently only meets 500-600 gallons per minute. The current static pressure is 65psi and needs to be 105psi. The school is proposing replacing all of the six-inch lines on the west side of Ninth Street to Oak Street and the four-inch lines from Ninth Street to Spruce Street with 10-inch lines and then extending the lines as well as Ninth Street to the school site. The school will also include a 10-inch line loop around the proposed school building.
Meeting attendees expressed concerns that the increase in pressure will possibly damage lines in nearby properties or possibly cause the lines to blow up. Henderson explained there should only be two properties that will require a pressure reducing valve, the LDS church and one household. Public Works Director Kevin Larimore confirmed no properties on Ninth Street should be affected and there will be more pressure from French Street to Yucca Court but he is unsure if there will be many issues from the pressure change. Trustee Tony Dinger asked if the affected residents would have to pay for the pressure release valve themselves, which Henderson confirmed but stated there would be insurance benefits to having more functional fire hydrants in the area. Dinger stated he understood that, but asked “Who’s going to sell them that?”
Mayor Chris Trujillo pointed out the upgrade will also help the ISO fire insurance rating for the whole town, with Larimore adding they could also add more fire hydrants to Ninth Street as well.
Burr explained the school has looked at multiple options to meet their water storage and pumping needs. The cheapest option would be about $180,000 and includes building the necessary 150,000 water storage on site. The most expensive option, at least $500,000, would be to dig a municipal well on the property and create their own septic system. The Ninth Street extension would be about $278,000 at the school’s expense and would be the most “middle of the road option,” with Burr referring to it as a “win-win” for both entities, and they can also look into joint grant options as well.
The school board expressed urgency because they need to have the initial plans for the first phase of their bid pack to their engineers by June 7 to keep the new school on schedule. The town board’s concern was the ability to meet with their engineers and confirm the plans before they could make any formal action or approval before their next meeting on June 13. Burr explained the school is willing to take on the risk and the $150,000 required for the matching funds for a DOLA grant  that could help pay for the project, which opens in August, if the town would commit to making the best effort in applying for the grant. School Board President Neal Walters also indicated the school could take on some of the costs of the pressure release valves for the two properties affected, roughly estimated at $2,000 each, if the property owners requested. Walters noted it couldn’t be done instantaneously, but they would be willing to work on it. “All we’re asking is if it’s ok and the engineers don’t throw a hand grenade into everything, are we a go?” Walters asked the board.
Burr and Henderson addressed the town’s other questions, including confirming a traffic study would not be needed and they can keep the sewer lines at the same elevation. Burr confirmed they will be looking at a turning lane on Chico Drive to prevent a backup of traffic during pickup/drop-off times and will be fixing some of the drainage issues around the track.
 “The sentiment from all of us is we want to work together,” Burr stated with Trujillo adding “There’s 1,500 people in this town that feel the same way,” before asking if the school has looked into annexation options any further. Burr confirmed they are speaking with the district’s attorney. Del Norte attorney Eugene Farish noted the school would be operating in the town’s loop with the new water line, which Burr corrected the loop would be the school’s property but the tap would belong to the town. Burr noted from the football field’s 50-yard line to the east is county property, “I don’t know why we wouldn’t annex in.” Farish noted it would simplify a lot with the water issues and Trujillo stated they would be paying one and a half times as much for water in the county. Farish indicated he can work on a pre-annexation agreement with terms both sides find viable, with Burr hinting since the school was paying for the $273,000 water project it would be nice to get the $500 annexation fee waived.
Burr asked the Town board if they would be interested in splitting the $75,000 for the matching funds for the DOLA grant, adding “You’re telling me you don’t have $75,000 in the coffers somewhere?”
“Yes, but it’s not budgeted for this year,” Trujillo answered.
The school seemed satisfied with the town’s commitment to apply for the grant to move on with the project.