Officials to float ideas on water

SPRINGVILLE — Springville city leaders will gather Friday at Hobble Creek Golf Course, but a relaxing round of golf will not be on the agenda.

Instead, they will huddle up at the nineteenth hole — the golf course clubhouse — for a daylong discussion of city water concerns.

"This will be more of an idea day," City Councilman Craig Conover said. "We're not going to set any policy."

The meeting is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m., and leaders hope to conclude discussions by 5 p.m.

The intensive discussion session follows a long, dry summer that has seen reduced water flow at city-owned springs that are the city's namesake. The springs, coupled with the city's five wells, are currently the sole source of drinking and irrigation water in the city.

Mandatory watering restrictions combined with a few technical snags have tried residents' patience this summer.

"We don't really want to restrict people (from watering)," Conover said.

He said that is why city leaders are meeting to brainstorm ways to make better use of the city's existing water sources and look for ways to add or improve additional resources.

Residents have been restricted to watering their yards and gardens on alternating days through the week, according to their address. Watering is not allowed on Sunday so that city water tanks can be refilled. Those restrictions will remain in force through the end of September.

Part of Friday's discussion will focus on ways to match water needs to the closest water resource, Conover said. That could mean, for example, using a spring-fed pond at Spring Acres Park to provide water for the sprinkling system at nearby Springville High, Conover said.

The meeting will also look at possible benefits from matching watering patterns with soil types. An example there is using shorter but more frequent waterings for lawns with a clay soil base, Conover said.

In addition to the springs, city leaders will try to determine if they can make better use of Hobble Creek. That water is currently used to green the acres that surround the clubhouse where city leaders and staff will be meeting.

"There's not a lot to pump out of there now," Conover said.

Other topics expected to get attention include: