Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 19, 1991 TAG: 9104190539
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Town officials have offered to sell up to 2 million gallons daily to the city.
City Manager Robert Herbert has warned that shortages could occur because the Falling Creek filtration plant, under renovation, is not scheduled to be back in operation until August.
Kit Kiser, director of utilities and operations for Roanoke, said Thursday that Vinton officials are "willing to help us if we have a problem this summer."
Vinton's selling water to Roanoke would be a reversal of roles. For many years, the city sold water to the town, but Vinton developed its own supply a decade ago by drilling wells. The city still sells water to Vinton to supply the Precision Fabrics plant near the city limits, but the town supplies water to its other customers.
The town has agreed to sell water for $1.16 per 1,000 gallons, the same price the city charges for Precision Fabrics.
Roanoke has plenty of water in the Carvins Cove reservoir, but the demand on hot and dry days exceeds the capacity of its treatment plants.
In an effort to avoid shortages, Kiser said the city also may offer a bonus to the contractor for early completion of the Falling Creek renovations.
But Kiser isn't optimistic that the project can be speeded because, he said, the contractor may have to wait for delivery of some equipment.
The Falling Creek plant can provide 2 million gallons a day. This is a small part of the city's rated capacity of 23.5 million gallons, but can be critical on hot days when demand is heavy, Kiser said.
During recent summers, some neighborhoods have been without water for several hours because of low pressure. The problem could be worse and more widespread this year, officials have said.
by CNB