WATER DISTRICT WILL GET NEW WELL

GORDONVILLE -- An official with the Gordonville-Dutchtown Public Water District Number Four said Friday the district's second water well should be in operation by late summer.

Jerry Lorberg, president of the district's board of directors, said drilling of the new well began about two weeks ago on a tract of land near Highway 25, at the north end of the water district.

"We're down to 1,125 feet, which may the final depth, depending on the flow rate, and a final report from the Missouri Geological Survey in Rolla," Lorberg said. "This is the same depth that the city of Jackson is pumping from.

"If everything goes according to plan, we should have the well on-line in about three months."

Lorberg said the low bidder for the well-drilling project was Robinson Construction Company of Perryville. Their bid was $117,000.

The project includes drilling the well, installing the well casing, construction of the well house, and purchase of a submergible pump.

Southern Engineering of Cape Girardeau is the consultant on the project.

Lorberg said the water district will install about 600 feet of water main from the well to connect with the district's existing water main along Highway 25.

The land on which the new well is situated was donated to the water district by Henry E. Niemann and his sister, Opel Niemann Stearns, in memory of their parents, Henry and Clara Niemann.

"This gift will save the water district about $20,000 in land costs, water line extensions, and electrical costs," Lorberg said.

He said the second well will provide additional water and will serve as a backup to the district's existing well.

"What we're trying to do is maintain an uninterrupted supply of water for our customers," Lorberg said. "About a year ago, the pump in our existing well failed. We were without water for three days.

"With a second well, we can maintain a water supply and do maintenance work on the other well. Right now, that's not possible without interrupting service to the 215 families in the water district."

Lorberg said that during peak water demand periods, the single well is unable to supply enough water to meet demand. "That means the pump in the well is running nearly continuously during the summer months," he said. "We depend on the stand pipe water reservoir to keep up with the demand for water."

The water district was created in 1975 and served 100 families. The existing well is in Gordonville. The water is stored in a vertical stand-pipe water reservoir at the intersection of Highway 25 and Route Z in Gordonville.