
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, November 8, 1995                   TAG: 9511080060
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-3   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: CLAYTON BRADDOCK STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RADFORD                                LENGTH: Medium

WATER PROJECT TO BE BIG ITEM FOR RADFORD

City Council members peered down at the holding tanks of the city's drinking water from the New River.

On the surface, they saw leaves, insect wings and other bits of debris.

But they couldn't see what they wanted to see - the bottom.

That's because the water treatment plant just off First Street is 50 years old and in trouble. Council members could not see the bottom because of high levels of "turbidity" - stirred-up sediment or foreign particles.

Though the water, after it's processed, is safe for drinking, the plant is struggling with the mechanics of pumping and filtering up to eight million gallons of water each year.

So on Monday, council members also saw something else they didn't want to see: The $3 million tab the city will have to pay to renovate the plant. They will have to approve money for the project in the next few weeks. Council members spent Monday night touring the plant for a closer look at what the money would buy.

"This project is not a renovation," said City Manager Robert Asbury. "It is a remedial maintenance project."

Most of the plant was built in 1940 with a few minor additions in 1972. A laboratory to monitor chemicals and filtration is so old that instrumentation stopped functioning more than six months ago, said Jettie Montgomery, supervisor of the plant.

A final council decision will be made in about two weeks - after Asbury and engineers take a closer look at a budget and a project timetable.

Council members praised Montgomery's work on keeping the city's water safe, in spite of dangers that frequently threaten the water supply. He, in turn, praised a dedicated staff. Montgomery emphasized last month that health was a top priority.

The two-year project, outlined by Hayes, Seay, Mattern and Mattern, architects and engineers, will bring the plant up to a safe operating level.

The project will include:

Improvements to the pumping and filtration system.

An expanded laboratory.

A new chemical mixer.

A new chlorine system.

Repairs on the water storage basins.

Employee safety items.

by CNB