Council approves 2‑year Maguire Iron agreement to rehabilitate two storage tanks

The council approved a two‑year service agreement with Maguire Iron Inc. to rehabilitate and provide maintenance for the city’s Northtown and Woodland ground storage tanks. Acting Public Works Director Walter introduced Spencer Wollman of Maguire Iron, who told the council, “We’ve looked at all 10 of your tanks the last 2 years, and it’s definitely time to rehabilitate these tanks and get new coating systems on them.”

Wollman said the company prioritized the two tanks because internal rafters were failing and recommended addressing major concerns now to avoid substantially higher replacement costs later. Councilmembers discussed funding: one councilmember asked whether the approximately $213,000 annual cost would come from the utility fund and staff confirmed the expense is budgeted in next year’s utility construction budget and that the work likely would be scheduled for late this year or early next year given contractor lead times.

Council also discussed setting up a maintenance program and the benefits of spreading rehabilitation costs versus paying for a large single replacement year; Wollman said a maintenance plan and periodic inspections can reduce the risk of sudden, expensive repairs. The council moved and carried the item to enter into the two‑year agreement as posted.