ESTEVAN - The refurbishment of Estevan’s water tower is well underway.
The project, which is being funded through money the city has received from the federal gas tax, started on Feb. 22. An area surrounding the water tower was roped off.
Sandblasting the inside of the tank was one of the first tasks to be completed in early March.
They also had to determine the repairs that needed to happen on the bottom of the water tower’s bowl.
“Of course, there will be some wear spots on it, so we are expecting to have to weld some additional metal on some of the spots,” said Bucsis. “The amount is still unknown. Sandblasting had to be done first to get a better picture of what repairs would have to be done to the bottom of the bowl.”
Once the welding was completed on the fatigued areas, the scaffolding was installed inside the water tower and crews started to sandblast the remaining area. After that they began welding repairs to the tower.
The biggest part of the project will be replacing the main pipe that feeds the water inside the centre column of the tower.
“They want to finish up all of the bowl repairs, get that all good, and then start bringing in the mechanical work,” said Bucsis.
Working on drain lines, enlarging the hatches and replacing the walkway at the entrance will also be completed to bring the water tower up to current safety standards.
They will paint the interior and the exterior. Once that work is completed, the city’s name will still be painted with quotation marks around it.
The water tower refurbishment isn’t expected to be completed until late spring or early summer. The majority of the mechanical work should be wrapping by the end of April. Then they have to wait for the temperature to warm up to complete the painting.
Centennial Park, where the water tower is located, should be open for most of the project.
“If at any time the park needs to be closed for crane activity or anything like that, we will send out notices to let people know and close off the area,” he said.
Bucsis also thanked those who reside in the area for the way in which they have dealt with the increased noise.
