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Watertown approves bonding for leaking reservoir

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The Watertown City Council recently approved a plan to bond for $12 million, repairing the leaking Thompson Park reservoir.

The 5 million gallon reservoir leaks thousands of gallons a day. The $12 million bond is the maximum price of the project should the council proceed with replacing the reservoir entirely.

City officials say having the bond ordinance needs to be approved before you spend any dollar you intend to borrow on.

“I will not be going out to the bond market and borrow this anytime soon," City Comptroller James Mills said. "I would not borrow it until staff comes back to you with what the best option is, goes out to bid, you’re presented with the bids to go with company A, B, or C. You know what the contract amounts are, then I’ll be bonding from that point forward, but nowhere near in the short term.”

The city manager said a preliminary engineering is due at the end of the month to the Environmental Facilities Corporation in order to qualify for state funding on the project.

Ava Pukatch joined the WRVO news team in September 2022. She previously reported for WCHL in Chapel Hill, NC and earned a degree in Journalism and Media from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. At UNC, Ava was a Stembler Scholar and a reporter and producer for the award-winning UNC Hussman broadcast Carolina Connection. In her free time, Ava enjoys theatre, coffee and cheering on Tar Heel sports. Find her on Twitter @apukatch.