Lewiston, ID- Mayor Daniel Johnson has called a special meeting of the Lewiston City Council to consider increasing the limit of emergency spending for the design and construction of a solution for water storage in the high zone of the City’s water system. The proposed resolution, if approved, would allow expedited emergency spending of up to $3,000,000 of water reserve funds. The Council will also be considering a change order to initiate phase two of this project to repair the reservoir.
“I want to assure everyone that our city staff and consultants are working diligently to analyze solutions for water storage in the high zone of the City of Lewiston’s water system and have identified a well-rounded solution,” Mayor Daniel Johnson said. “The proposed solution includes removing the damaged roof of the high reservoir located near 16th Avenue, placing a liner inside the high reservoir, and covering the high reservoir with a floating cover.”
If both items are approved by the Lewiston City Council, final design and construction work would begin immediately and the City may be able to lift irrigation restrictions by the start of August.
“The City’s goal is to provide the needed water flow in this area and lift restrictions as soon as possible,” Mayor Johnson said. “It could happen sooner than August 1, but the proposed contract has a completion date of July 31.”
The Lewiston City Council will come together for a special meeting at 4:00 p.m., tomorrow, Wednesday, May 3, 2023, in the west conference room of City Hall, to discuss and make a decision on this proposal. The meeting is open to the public and will be streamed live at https://livestream.com/accounts/11220190. You can view the agenda for this meeting and supporting documents at https://www.cityoflewiston.org/720/Agendas-Minutes.
“I understand that this has been a challenging time for our community and I appreciate everyone’s patience and cooperation,” Mayor Johnson said. “Our team is working hard to ensure that the city’s water supply remains reliable and that we are doing everything we can to provide you with safe and clean water.”
We encourage you to watch this recording of the update provided by Public Works Director Dustin Johnson at the City Council’s regularly scheduled work session on Monday, May 1, 2023. This video provides a recap of steps taken from the time the high reservoir ruptured until now, what factors are contributing to the extended timeline for repairing the high reservoir, why the City issued a hand-watering irrigation restriction instead of a different type of water conservation effort, and the proposed solution for repairing the high reservoir moving forward.
