$2.6M first-phase pump station work approved for Apache Junction Water District

By Richard Dyer
Mail | X: @RHDyer

A water booster pump station to be replaced in two phases is to begin with a more than $2.6 million project approved recently by the Apache Junction Water District Board of Directors.

The board, comprised of Apache Junction City Council members, voted unanimously Sept. 16 to approve a construction agreement with MGC Contractors Inc. for phase 1 water campus No. 2 booster pump station replacement in an amount not to exceed $2,623,296.74. It is from a city of Peoria water wastewater treatment and remote facilities job order contract.

The second phase will be another $2.5 million, Water District Director Mike Loggins said during the meeting.

The booster pump station is adjacent to the city’s public works office at 575 E. Baseline Road.

“We have a couple tanks down there — well, six — and also a booster pump station. This pump station is about 30 years old. We’re getting additional service connections down here, we have additional development in the industrial park.... So larger fire-flow demands is the biggest key that we are talking about there,” Loggins said.

The existing booster pumps provide 1,000 gallons of water per minute. By replacing two booster pumps with three new ones, there could be 3,000 gallons of water per minute, he said.

“They are basically stop and start pumps. So when the pressure drops to a certain pressure — say it goes from 70 (psi) to 50 (psi) — they turn it on and we’re right back up to 70 (psi) and they shut off.... So its constantly putting pressure ... on our pipe,” Loggins said.

Water district

The Apache Junction water district supplies well water (groundwater) pumped from the Eastern Salt River Sub-Basin Aquifer, which flows southwesterly under Apache Junction and its surrounding areas. The groundwater is treated for arsenic removal where necessary, disinfected with chlorine, pumped into storage tanks and blended with Colorado River (surface) water.

The surface water is transported through the Central Arizona Project canal system, filtered and purified at the Superstition Area Water Plant before being introduced into the distribution system.

The water district can also receive treated CAP water from the city of Mesa through an interconnect for a backup supply of water, if needed.

Richard H. Dyer can be reached at rdyer@iniusa.org, or on X @rhdyer. Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@inusua.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines, https://www.yourvalley.net/civility-checklist/.

Richard Dyer
Managing Editor | East Valley

rdyer@iniusa.org

Meet Richard
Richard Dyer has worked at Independent Newsmedia Inc. USA since 1987, starting his career in Apache Junction as a copy editor and being promoted over the years to work as the editor of the Mesa Independent, news services editor for the East Valley office in Apache Junction, managing editor for the East Valley office, news services editor for the East Valley office and eventually also for the newspapers at INI’s then-Chandler office, managing editor again and as a news editor covering Apache Junction/Gold Canyon and Queen Creek. He helped start the Florence Independent while the news editor covering Apache Junction and Mesa news. In January 2023, he became associate managing editor for the East Valley newspapers and in August 2023 became managing editor for the East Valley newspapers of Chandler/Tempe, Gilbert, Queen Creek, Florence, Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon, while also reporting on Mesa and Apache Junction/Gold Canyon.  

Community: Since 2009, he has worked as a volunteer to design The Blue Guitar Magazine, Blue Guitar Jr. magazine and Unstrung magazine, which are projects of The Arizona Consortium for the Arts; and since 2014, has been overseeing the art submissions. 

Education: University of Arizona with a master of arts in journalism and a bachelor of science in agricultural communication. Also continuing education at Mesa Community College in welding in a metal art sculpture class.

Random fact: Saw his first tornado on May 31, 2010, which was classified as an EF-2, as part of a stormchasing tour group.

Hobbies: He is an artist of welded-steel sculptures, selling his artwork at juried and non-juried art shows.