 A new 187-foot elevated water tank will soon grace the south Broken Arrow skyline.
A new elevated water storage tank is coming to the northeast corner of New Orleans Street and Lynn Lane.
“It is a composite tank, and it will look nicer than the steel tank that’s already at New Orleans Square,” Assistant City Manager of Operations Kenneth Schwab said at the Broken Arrow Municipal Authority meeting on Sept. 5.
The City owns the 11.5 acres that will house the new water tower, and the waterline work has already begun in its vicinity.
Design for the project is underway, and Schwab anticipates the bidding process will begin early next year. The project’s estimated cost is just over $6 million.
The Broken Arrow Municipal Authority unanimously approved moving forward with the project. With the City’s growing population, continuously improving its infrastructure is a necessity.
The 2020 U.S. Census lists Broken Arrow’s population at 117,911, compared to 98,850 in 2010.
“That will help the water supply in the southern part of the city, right?” Broken Arrow Municipal Authority Trustee Johnnie Parks said.
“Yes, right now, when you think about the southern part of the City, we only have the elevated tank at New Orleans and Elm Place, and it’s only one million gallons there,” Schwab said. “This will probably hold 1.5 to 2 million gallons. We’re not sure about the size yet. That is in the fine-tuning of the design.”
The elevated storage tank will be 187 feet tall. Elevated water storage tanks pressurize water for distribution to all surrounding homes and businesses.
They are typically located on high ground and are large enough to contain a day’s worth of water for the area served by the tower. Elevated water storage tanks work with the assistance of gravity and must be tall enough to provide water pressure between 50-100 PSI (pound-force per square inch). Broken Arrow currently has six elevated water tanks in the city with a total capacity of 11 million gallons. For more, go to New water tower planned for south BA | City News | City of Broken Arrow (brokenarrowok.gov)
Here's what's happening beyond the dirt and cones
Project updates September 2023
Near the high school, between 9th and 23rd Streets, the Albany Street widening project is coming along nicely. The contractor is installing a storm sewer line on the south side of the street, reconstructing the school driveways, and paving the southeast quadrant of the intersection. The intersection work should finish in early October. The crew will then shift its focus to the widening of Albany Street. The contractor and Oklahoma Department of Transportation expect this project to finish up next spring.
At the 23rd Street widening project, from Houston to Kenosha, ODOT is widening 23rd Street, also known as County Line Road, to five lanes with a brand-new bridge over State Highway 51. The contractor is currently working on the bridge approaches and its sub-structure. Temporary roadway widening is under construction along the east side of 23rd Street from Houston to College Streets. Intersection construction on 81st Street will begin after the completion of the stretch of road between the bridge and Houston Street. ODOT expects this project to finish in May 2024.
On 37th Street, from Houston to Kenosha Streets, a contractor has completed 95 percent of the dirt work. Most of the curb, gutter and roadway bases are also finished and now they are laying the asphalt. The process will continue over the next two weeks and normal traffic access will return in late September to early October. Final cleanup will follow, and the project is expected to be completed late this year or early 2024.
Washington Street is also being widened to five lanes from Olive to Aspen Avenues. Travel is currently permitted both directions on the north side of the roadway. Storm sewer installation continues on the south side of Washington Street, which will be followed by minor waterline relocations and upgrades. The contractor will finish the entire south side of the project in early October before switching to the north side. The north side of Washington is expected to be finished in December. Mill and overlay will follow in January and the entire project should finish early in the first quarter of 2024.
For more information, watch this month's Broken Arrow in Motion.
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 Community Development Director Kevin Maevers shares updates on the latest developments approved by the City Council in August. Discover new projects like Iron Buck Acres, the Broken Arrow Rowhouse and more by clicking on the graphic above.
Trail network expanding to south Broken Arrow
New trails that will improve connectivity for bicyclists and pedestrians are coming to south Broken Arrow.
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The City Council approved a project agreement between the city and the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) on July 31, and City Manager Michael Spurgeon says that he eagerly anticipates the project's start.
Greater connectivity within the city is the goal. For more information, go to Trail network expanding.
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