Victoria MN Newspaper

"We get a lot of drainage complaints in Victoria," she continued. "We get a lot of calls from people to make water swales in their backyard go away. I can't even tell you how often I go out there and those same people are sprinkling! I see that there's a disconnect. They're not paying attention to how often their sprinkler is running. They don't need to run their sprinkler every other day. Lawns have mushrooms growing, which means overwatered. With our heavy clay soil, they don't need to water so often.

Cara said that Victoria has some things in place to help conserve water -- like a conservation rate structure: the more water you use, the higher the rate you pay. And there are watering restrictions.

Said Ann, "People are willing to pay tickets because they want a green lawn."

"I'd like us to take on more education," said Cara, "especially at Homeowners Associations."

Ann and Cara presented a map of all the properties in the city and the water used at each of them. Most of the heaviest water users live in Watermark, Lakebridge, Rhapsody, Deer Run, and Laketown.

Councilmember Jim Crowley pointed out that the heaviest water user is the City of Victoria itself. The ballfields at Lions Park take volumes of water to keep green.

Said Cara, "The Public Works people have been waving a red flag to me for some years now. We seem to have a lot more people putting in irrigation systems. The amount of water the city can pump out is getting problematic. In our comprehensive plan, we've identified the next water structures needed."

Water Facilities in Victoria

The City of Victoria currently has two storage tanks. The elevated tank at Holy Family holds 500,000 gallons. The underground tank at the Water Treatment Plant holds 600,000 gallons.

Victoria's current water system also includes three wells (Smithtown Well was abandoned in 2005), a Water Booster Station that adds pressure to serve houses at higher elevations, 51 miles of watermain, 568 hydrants, 560 hydrant valves, and 500 system valves. Valves are installed in front of the hydrants and throughout the system so problems can be isolated and repaired.

Said Cara, "Preliminary design of a new water storage facility is in process. The tank would be constructed and put into service in 2015. The need for a second water treatment facility is based on growth rates. Based on current usage, we would need it once the population served reaches 13,000."

Estimated cost of a new well is around $100,000 plus a well house and equipment which means a total of close to $1 million.

Victoria's existing water treatment center was completed in 2006 at a cost of $9.5 million.

Said Cara, "We still haven't started talking yet about Well #5 for Victoria. We're still trying to figure out where to put an additional well ... With our clay soils, water doesn't soak in; it runs. It runs to the ponds, to the lakes, to the streets, to the ditches. There has to be a better way to access the water that we do have here."

It went without saying that Victoria is the City of Lakes and Parks and sometimes high water.

"In terms of timing, we projected out going forward," said Cara. "We're assuming 150 building permits per year now. This is different than doing our budget, when we want to be conservative. Here we want to make sure we've planned for enough water. We need to find a reliable groundwater source and site for a new well."

Water Behavior in Victoria

Said Mayor Tom O'Connor, "I don't think we take this serious. It's hard to get people to change their behavior."

Stated Cara, "I'm shocked that some people in Victoria have a third quarter water bill of $1,200. I don't think we're selling the community on having dried up burnt lawns, but if I can get rid of the swales and mushrooms, that would be a good step."

Answering questions from Council, Ann stated, "We do notice violations and we take down house numbers and get them to the city, but some homeowners would rather pay the $50 and have the water."

Topsoil in Victoria

Asked Councilmember Joe Pavelko, "Have we got a requirement for grading? We've got no topsoil? If we're not willing to address that ... We've got hundreds of homes with only two inches of topsoil on top of compacted clay. We could require 4 to 5 inches of topsoil from developers."

Said Councilmember Crowley, a resident in the Laketown neighborhood, "Every home in Laketown has a sprinkler system. We could send letters out to them asking if they'd like to save $300 a month."

Discussion will continue.

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