Second Mt. Prospect water tower a good idea, expert says

Mount Prospect could use a second elevated tower to help increase water pressure on the village's south side, according to an expert who presented a report to the village board on Tuesday.

"The issue is south of Northwest Highway," said Randall Patchett, an associate with Burns & McDonnell. "You could install a tower on some land near the public works building."

The second tower would be part of a $15.3-million multiyear plan Patchett suggested to get the village's water distribution system up to date. The plan would be implemented in the next 10 to 15 years.

Once complete, the number of water main breaks would decrease and the water pressure would even out throughout Mount Prospect, Patchett said.

Villages like Mount Prospect change over the years - industries move in, homes are torn down and larger ones are build in their place. But water systems generally remain the same, Patchett said.

"Sometimes the configuration can't match the demand," he said.

Mount Prospect gets its water from Lake Michigan and has more than 170 miles of mains which are between four and 24 inches in diameter. The village has one elevated tower and six ground storage tanks, according to Patchett's report. Every 10 days, the village's water supply turns over and about 54 percent of the village's water is less than five days old.

"That's well above average when it comes to water quality," he said.

Mount Prospect, however, has a higher number of water main breaks when compared to the national average.

Between February 1986 and June 2007, there were 1,260 water main breaks in Mount Prospect - an average of 60 breaks a year. Patchett blames the breaks on older pipes, since many in Mount Prospect are more than 50 years old.

Trustee John Korn supported the report.

"This is an opportunity to make a good system better," he said.

Mount Prospect has made major improvements to roads and sanitary sewer systems in the past. Now it's time to focus on the village's water supply, said Mayor Irvana Wilks.

"We always knew it was important to look at our water system," she said. "This study will allow us to spend our money wisely."