Daily globe., 1882-03-01
WATER SUPPLY.
Report of the Water Commission Made to
the City Council.

purchase ana extension OF the present wafer
works, made to the city council, at session
held last evening:
To the Honorable the Common Council of the
City of st. Paul:
| GENTLEMEN:-The undersigned, appointed
| Commissioners by the Honorable Judges OF
| the district court, in accordance with the act
of the legislature of Minnesota, approved Feb.
10, 1881. entitled, San act to authorize the
city of st. Paul to purchase the franchises and
property of the st. Paul Water company, and
creating the Board of Water Commits
sioners," respectfully report to your honor
able body, IS follows, to-wit:
| The duties of the undersigned, as prescribed
| by Section l of the said act were, after taking
the required oath. "to inquire into and re-
port as to the efficiency of the general plan
adopted by said water company to supply the
city with water, what plan they would rec
| Ommend so as to furnish water 10 all parts of
the city, and the cost thereof, the oropriety
of the purchase of the st. Paul Water Com
pany's property and franchises by the city of
| st. Paul, and such other facts as the Common
Council may order and direct" In the dis
charge of the duties thus imposed on them,
the undersigned have devoted much time and
investigation to the subject. One of their
number, Joseph P. Frizell, hydraulic engi-
1
region embraced in the present system by
| himself and other members of the commission
Was requested to make an accurate survey there
of, taking the levels requisite to determine the
area which could be depended upon for a sup
ply of water at all seasons, from the lakes and
| their tributaries, and to estimate the cost of
extending the existing system, SO as to include
| all outside sources, which could, without ex-
| cessive outlay, be connected Herewith. He
was also instructed to investigate, and COM
municste to the commission any and all pract'
cable modes OF furnishingLevery ward of tie
| city now and prospectively with water. His
report, which is hereby made part of this
report, is appended for your consideration. 1t
contains an exhaustive presentation of the
whole subject. with estimates of the cost of
each plan that he regards as feasible, and tab
ulated statements necessary to full under
standing of his premises.
| The unde' signed have spared neither time
nor labor in the examintion of the report of
Mr.. Frizell, and in obtaining information
| from other reliable sources, to enable them to
present to your honorable body, in the form
of recommendation, the plan which, in
| their Judgment, is the most practicable, and
| the least expensive. 1t is proper to mention,
that much delay has occurred in securing the
requisite data, and in prosecuting the surveys.
by reason of the unfavorable weather during
the season of 1881, which greatly retarded op-
eratiOns, and by the abnormal condition OF the
lakes and streams caused by incessant rains,
which rendered it difficult to calculate the av-
erage volume of the water obtainable from the
lake system from year to year. The
undersigned, in endeavoring to solve this
grave, and indeed vital problem, have assumed
what they believe to be the minimum OF the
supply that can be relied on In a dry season,
from such facts as could be collected from the
observation and experience of the past.
A preliminary report was submitted by Mr.
Frlzell, on 9th of October last, and printed
for the use Of the commission, which en-
bodied the surveys and estimates made by him
previous to that date; but as it was necessarily
incomplete, it was considered best that the
whole ground should be reexamined, and the
| surveys extended so as to embrace every stream
the body of water which could be made tribu
| tary to the lake system. The results have been
highly satisfactory, as will be seen by his
amended report, the favorable weather of the
present winter affording ample opportunity
| for accurate field operations.
| The undersigned do not regard with favor
| the plans suggested by Mr.. Frizell, for sup
plying water to the city from above, and be-
| low, the falls of st. Anthony respectively, OIL
account of the greater cost OF introduction
| from so distant poiut, and other reasons not
necessary to be enumerated in this report.
The lake, or present system, with extensions
| from time to time, as the inbrease Of popula-
| tiOn may demand, is practically without limit,
| so far as the quantity of water is concerned.
| The plan of eliminating therefrom Lake Pha-
| len was suggested by the fact, that the in
crease of the city will very soon envelope that
| eheet of water with population SO dense, as
| to render it too impure from drainage and
other causes, to be used for city purposes.
| That consideration is so important as to JUS
| thy the expense of extinguishing whatever
,,riy 10 rrrbf ho nv off
| the flow into that basin. The region above
and around Lake Vadnais is not likely for
| many years, if ever, to become so thickly set
| tied as to prove source of pollution, or per-
| ceptibly to affect the purity of the stream run
| ming through it,
/, The purchase of the property and franchises
| of the st. Paul Water company, if it can be
cOnsummated for reasonable sum, is indis-
pensable, in the judgment Of the Undersigned,
to the success of any system that may be
adopted. The rights OF that corporation can.
not be infripged upon without its consent
until they cease to exist by limitation, period
of nine years hence. Such being the case, NO
plan for the water supply to all parts of st.
Paul can be completed, which does not prlma
rily embrace the system of that company. 1t
might indeed be that scheme could be de-
vised to furnish those portions of the city not
now accessible by gravitation from Lake Pha
| len, but duplex arrangement OF that kind
would be environed with difficulties, especially
| if the water company could show an interfer-
ence by the city with it's vested rights or water
privileges. 1t is highly desirable, therefore,
| from every point of view, thai the city should
acquire as first step, all the property of that
corporation, in anywise pertaining to-, or
connected with their present operations.
The average daily amount of water deliv-
| cred through the mains of the water company
| is, as we are reliably informed, about one
million of gallons. The area supplied con-
tains approximately one-third of the
population of the city. Assuming that
| eighteen thousand people are daily furnished
| from this source, the consumption is equal to
fraction over gfty-five gallons per capita, an
| average considerably in excess of the con-
sumption of several American cities as
shown by the statistical tables. The
volume of water obtainable from the
| lake system, with Lakes Vadnais
and Sandy Lake as reservoirs, is not less than
,OOO,0 900 of gallons per diem, without resort
| ing to Rice creek, and Forest lake, both of
which, when the necessity arises, can be made
| tributary, affording all the water required for
| the wants of more than 100000 of people.
The foregoing brief summary, based upon
| the most reliable data that can be collected
proves that st. Paul has at command, all the
water resources that will ever be needed, al
lowing for any probable increase OF
population. One hundred and twenty
| thousand people can be provided
aoob ,,;4I, fffy ., Hang nor dav without frepoh