Oakes, ND – Water Tower Improvements & Addition

Challenge:

The City of Oakes’ water storage system consisted of two separate towers, one from the 1920s and another from 1981. Both towers were deteriorated, capacity was inadequate, the city experienced operational problems due to water tower elevations and the towers were in need of lead paint removal, coating replacement and major improvements.

Solution:

One of the city’s 250,000-gallon water tower was 35 years old and needed rehabilitation, including structural repairs, OSHA required safety upgrades, piping and venting improvements and fresh internal and external coatings.

In addition, the City of Oakes needed additional capacity to serve the 1,800-person community, so the older water tower originally constructed in 1927 was replaced with a new steel single pedestal 300,000-gallon tower.

Outcome:

Both towers are fully upgraded to current state, federal and local standards and are in excellent working condition. The new system serves the entire community, and residents have long term access to safe drinking water.

Moore Engineering sought project funding to upgrade the entire system by rehabilitating one of the towers and replacing the other. The entire project was funded with a 45% grant and 55% loan through the USDA’s Rural Development program.