By Jessica Edwards

The Haines Borough Planning Commission last week denied the borough a variance to its own 30-foot height restriction for a new water tank in Highland Estates, after considering public testimony.

Residents were united in their concern about the location of the 41-foot-high steel tank and its impact on neighborhood aesthetics. Several questioned the safety of the tank’s proposed location above and beside expensive homes.

After a discussion of community concerns, the commission passed a motion that the borough reconsider the water tank project in terms of its location, size and water source.

Commission member Rob Goldberg raised the idea of locating the tank on a nearby borough lot that abuts a cliff and is away from the road. "The lot is flat and not in anyone’s view," he said. Members unanimously supported pursuing the lot.

Water and sewer operator Scott Bradford said the borough never considered the lot. Research will be needed to see if it’s a viable alternative, including whether a historic spill from the Army tank farm pipeline occurred there.

Concerns were raised by the commission about increasing the holding capacity almost ten-fold; the old tank holds 50,000 gallons of water and the proposed tank would hold nearly half a million.

Planning commission member Kathleen Menke wondered if a smaller tank would meet the needs for fire safety and neighborhood use. "What about four times the capacity – 200,000 gallons? That would reduce the risk and the size."

After discussions about the cost of pumping water from Lily Lake and the existence of a historical water source on the flank of Mount Ripinsky, five commissioners favored a hydrological investigation to develop a local water source.

Bradford said that if a suitable groundwater source were located, treatment of the water would be minimal. "If it’s groundwater, you just add chlorine. Surface water has to be treated" and filtered more thoroughly, he said.

Lee Heinmiller, Rob Goldberg, Kathleen Menke, Jack Smith and Deborah Vogt were in favor of the motion. Harriet Brouillette was absent.

Don Turner III voted against the motion, saying that while the idea of relocating a tank site had merit, developing a local water source for the tank was "a pie in the sky" because it would require drilling into bedrock.

Five hillside residents voiced concerns. Saying they recognized the need for a replacement water tank, they raised issues including aesthetics of the proposed tank and its impact on property view sheds, its size, and the potential danger it posed to nearby residences should it fail.

Homeowner Joe Poor suggested locating the new tank near the tank that serves Skyline Estates, an idea seconded by neighborhood residents. He said that location, on a spur up the road to the Mount Ripinsky trailhead, would preserve aesthetics and alleviate concerns about potential flooding.

Poor objected to putting the new tank directly above his new house.

When the existing tank sprang a leak during the construction of his house, water poured down the road and around his foundation, he said. He was concerned about potential flooding from a 475,000-gallon tank. Poor also said the tank would reduce property values.

Bart Henderson agreed. "Aesthetic concerns are big. The borough sold the lots as view lots." It would be irresponsible of the borough to put the tank in the view shed and block the views people thought they had purchased, Henderson said.

Bradford said putting the new tank near the Skyline tank would be too costly. To pump water to the current tank costs the borough "nearly $10,000 a year in electricity," he said. Putting the tank higher on the mountainside would require the installation of additional pumps and could potentially double electricity costs.

As proposed by the borough, the new tank would be 41 feet tall and hold nearly half a million gallons of water. Borough code limits structures to 30 feet.

The borough had proposed to locate the large tank just behind the site of the old wooden stave tank on a lot adjacent to Young Road.

Residents and commission members voiced concern that the tank project had come before the commission and to public attention only due to the height variance request.

Borough manager Robert Venables said this week he was open to exploring the size and location of the tank with hillside residents, but said changing the location would increase the cost of the project.

The borough has $968,000 in grant funds to build the new tank, replace wood-stave pipes and realign a section of Young Road.