Published: October 10, 2008 11:13 pm      

One million gallon water tank dedicated in Princeton

PRINCETON — Even though most of Princeton’s residents can’t see them, they now have an extra million gallons of water ready for their faucets.

West Virginia-American Water and Princeton city officials hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony Friday at the end of Gott Road to celebrate a new water tank that was going into service. Costing approximately $750,000, the new tank can hold one million gallons of water, said Wayne Morgan, the company’s president.

The construction site is still being cleaned up, but the water tank should go into service “this coming week,” said Gregg Van Pelt, operations superintendent for the water company’s southern district.

Besides providing improved water service for Princeton and areas around the city, the water tank’s one million gallons will help maintain water service for nearby Princeton Community Hospital, said City Manager Wayne Shumate.

“I think this is another example of what West Virginia-American Water has done for our area,” said Mayor Dewey Russell. “The only way we could not have water forever is if the Bluestone Dam broke. I want to publicly thank West Virginia-American Water for what they have done in southern West Virginia.”

The water tank, which brings the Princeton area’s total to five tanks, was needed to reinforce the local water system, Van Pelt said. While providing better service to local homes and businesses, the additional water will also enhance fire fighting capacities.

Morgan said before the ribbon cutting that the tank’s $750,000 was not included in a proposed 12.37 percent rate increase since it was not in service last year when the rate was calculated. The requested increase is being driven by the rising cost of labor, fuel and electricity, he said. The price of water treatment chemicals, which are based on petroleum, have climbed by 72 percent.