Water tower work in Wixom prompts conservation plea

The city of Wixom will be taking its water tower off-line temporarily beginning tomorrow, Thursday, Oct. 6, to facilitate maintenance repairs.

The city’s elevated storage tower — located just north of I-96 between Wixom Road and Beck Road and constructed in 1999 — allows the city to purchase water from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) during lower cost non-peak periods and resell it to Wixom customers.

Additionally, the storage tank, which has a water capacity of 1.5 million gallons, supplements the system during periods of high demand such as fire fighting events. Over the course of the next six or seven weeks, service will be interrupted so the exterior and interior of the tank can be drained, sandblasted and recoated.

“In order to maintain the tank it must be emptied,” said Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Mike Howell. “By being off-line, the flows will be strictly controlled by DWSD. We opted to conduct this maintenance this time of year because people are shutting down their sprinkler systems.”

During this time, the city is imploring residents to reduce their water usage by limiting all non-essential water use, including lawn irrigation.

The city entered into an agreement with Utility Services, a division of United Water Environmental Services, for $308,000 to complete the project. Howell said other quotes from competitors ranged from $350,000 to $400,000, and did not include an addendum for water tower maintenance.

Howell said he anticipates system operations will be returned to normal by the Thanksgiving holiday or sooner.

Any questions pertaining to the project can be forwarded to the Wixom DPW at 248-624-0141, or United Water Environmental Services at 248-960-0870.