Palatine hires company to dismantle water tank

The upcoming dismantling of an elevated water tank in Palatine is part of a plan that will improve water pressure in that area, village officials said.

The elevated water tank at 1501 N. Hicks Road, just south of Dundee Road, has a capacity of 150,000 gallons. It was one of two elevated water tanks deemed obsolete by a comprehensive water system study done in 2010, Public Works Director Matt Barry said.

There is another 750,000-gallon elevated water storage tank just over a mile away, he said. Dismantling the water tank on Hicks Road also will save on costs for repairs and repainting.

"This is really one of the last major improvements that are needed to then switch our pressure zones within the village," Barry told the village council Monday night.

The village operates with three pressure zones - east, central and west. The village wants to switch the general area near the water tank on Hicks Road from the east zone to the central zone, Barry said.

"We can't do that until we take down this tank," he said. "That would improve normal operating pressures, as well as fire flows (water for firefighters) in that area."

The village issued a request for proposals, and five contractors submitted bids ranging from $44,900 to $105,325. The village council voted Monday to award the contract to the lowest bidder, Alpine Demolition Services LLC of St. Charles.

The village will fund the project out of $205,000 set aside in capital improvement funds for water tank removals and upgrades.

The first elevated water tank deemed obsolete by the 2010 study was located near the Buehler YMCA, also known as Countryside YMCA.

That water tank was dismantled in 2015 at cost of $25,760. The contract awarded Monday night was higher because the Hicks Road tank is larger and has more support columns, Barry said.

"The village was not in a position to remove the tank at 1501 N. Hicks Road until other system improvements were complete," he added.

The steel components of the water tank, estimated at 100 tons, are expected to be recycled, he said.

Before the dismantling, the village will install a monopole on the Hicks Road site to transfer the telecommunication systems installed on the water tank, Barry said.