Construction of new Idaho Falls water tower moving forward after months of delays
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IDAHO FALLS – Filling in a hole in the southeast corner of the Idaho Falls Public Library parking lot took a little longer than anticipated. After more than a year of work building the foundation for the new water tower, the second phase of construction is officially underway.
Water Superintendent David Richards tells EastIdahoNews.com crews hit rock as they began digging for the foundation last year. Bedrock covered half the foundation and it took a couple months to determine how to fill the gap and ensure “the foundation of the tower was on a solid surface.”
Though the issue has been resolved, Richards says it’s added another two or three months to the project. Originally slated for completion this fall, Richards anticipates a completion date in summer 2025.
The next step will include setting up the forms for the tower’s concrete pedestal before welding the steel bowl around the base and jacking it up. Once it’s welded and attached to the top of the concrete, it will need to be painted.
The completion of the painting phase is entirely dependent on weather.
“The temperature has to be in a certain range for the paint to adhere well,” says Richards. “We’ll have to wait and see how the weather plays out this spring. I anticipate the paint being dried and cured by mid-summer.”
The new 185-foot tower will have a storage capacity of about 1 million gallons of water — double the size of the current tower. Its design calls for one column, rather than having multiple legs to hold it up. Its expected life span is between 80 and 100 years.
Building it will cost the city about $9 million, which is being funded “in-house through water rates.”
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The tower is essential to the operation of the city’s potable water system. The water stored helps ensure residents have access to water in the event of a power outage. It helps provide storage during peak water usage and can be helpful in preventing contamination of the water supply, according to a document on the city’s website.
The city initially planned to build the tower at South Capital Park, but ultimately the library board offered a section of its parking lot as a potential site for the structure, which the city determined was an ideal spot because of its proximity to the existing well that feeds the current tower.
The existing tower near Idaho Falls Power was built in 1937. City officials identified multiple deficiencies several years ago, which is the reason a new one is being built.
Richards told us last year the construction of the new tower will support future growth and better serve the community.
“It will have additional capacity for emergency uses for firefighting … that the existing tower does not have,” he said.
Once it’s complete, Richards says a water line will have to be extended from the well behind Idaho Falls Power before it becomes operational.
“Once the paint is cured and water can be put in, it is considered operational. It can fill up from pressure in the water system itself,” he says.
Richards praises library employees for being “great to work with” during the construction. Though the size of the parking lot has been significantly reduced, he says it will be reconfigured once the job is complete.
The city is still trying to determine what to do with the old tower once it’s demolished. Additional details will be forthcoming once a decision has been finalized.
TAKE A LOOK AT THE TOWER CONSTRUCTION SITE IN THE VIDEO ABOVE.