A long-simmering plan to put a water storage tank in west Derby took a step forward last week.
The Derby Board of Aldermen gave permission to the South Central Regional Water Authority to drill test borings into the ground near the Chatfield Street entrance to the Derby High School/Middle school campus.
The land in question is owned by the city.
The nine test borings will help the utility company decide whether the wooded property can support a tank about 50 feet high. The dimensions come from statements RWA representatives made at public meetings in 2015.
The Aldermen didn’t give their blessings to the project — just the test borings.
The article continues after the map:
Water Tank Map by ValleyIndyDotOrg
The tank, if it were to come to fruition, would hold about 1 million gallons. The water company says it is needed as a backup for water distribution in west Derby.
Currently, the system has no backup, which leaves Derby vulnerable if there are fires, water main breaks or during periods of heavy water usage in the summer.
In 2013, Regional Water proposed a tank for “Telescope Mountain,” at the top of Summit Street in west Derby. That tank would have held 2 million gallons of water.
However, that proposal was met with stiff opposition from neighbors. The Telescope Mountain tank would have required dynamite blasting, the removal of 13,000 cubic yards of rock, and hundreds of truck trips to haul the rock off the site.
Leaders at Griffin Hospital have repeatedly said the water storage tank is needed, and cited a 2011 incident when the hospital was without water during a water main break.
After the Telescope Mountain controversy, Regional Water looked elsewhere, and resurfaced in 2015 with a conceptual plan to use about two acres in the woods near the high school entrance. The proposal then laid dormant until last month.
Since the land is owned by the city, the Aldermen and the Regional Water authority would have to work out a lease or sale agreement for the project to move forward.
Representatives from the Regional Water Authority did not speak at last Thursday’s Aldermen’s meeting, but they were in attendance during an Aldermen’s subcommittee meeting July 12.
Click here to read the minutes from the meeting.
Derby property owner Charlene McEvoy, who effectively led neighborhood opposition to the Telescope Mountain proposal, also attended last Thursday’s Aldermen meeting.
During the public portion of the meeting, McEvoy asked the Aldermen to table the matter for a month.
“I have some colleagues who would like to come and address the board about this issue,” McEvoy said.
McEvoy has previously raised historical issues about the property RWA wants to use — specifically about whether there were restrictions on the property’s deed regarding its use.
Second Ward Alderman Ron Sill voted against giving RWA permission to do the test borings. Second Ward Alderman Art Gerckens said he was recusing himself because his wife works for a company affiliated with Griffin Hospital. Second Ward Alderman Joseph DiMartino recused himself because he works for Griffin Hospital.
Gerckens said Griffin Hospital is a “driving force” behind the water tank project.
