150,000-Gallon Elevated Storage Tank, City of Britt, Iowa

150,000-Gallon Elevated Storage Tank

Location
Icon of City of Britt, Iowa

City of Britt, Iowa

Overview

“This project has been a huge investment in our community’s infrastructure, and updates an essential facility that has outlived its projected lifespan by more than half a century. Because of the historic relevance of our water tower, we worked with the SHPO to ensure that the history we were replacing would be honored, and we did that by designing a sculpture made from the old tower including salvaged pieces from the leg structure, company badge, and safety light. Additionally, because so many residents grew up playing in the shadows of the old tower, we reached out to residents for input on the design and used it as an opportunity to pay homage to our community’s history and connection with the American Hobo. All in all, it’s been an incredible project that will have a huge impact on quality of life for our residents while still paying tribute to our community and the past.”

– Ryan Arndorfer, Mayor

Sectors
The City of Britt was looking to replace their aging pressure filter plant with a new water treatment facility. During their water system evaluation, Bolton & Menk inspected both existing elevated storage tanks to determine condition and potential longevity.

Bolton & Menk recommended that the city construct a new 150,000-gallon tank next to the existing tank on the water treatment facility site to reduce maintenance costs and improve fire protection. During the environmental review process, the State Historical Preservation Office determined that the existing storage tank qualified as a historical structure. Bolton & Menk and the city worked to develop a mitigation plan containing a decorative sculpture from pieces of the old storage tank legs. The city also incorporated the finial from the top of the old tank into a display inside the water plant building and added symbols to the new storage tank logo commemorating the city’s hobo heritage.

The new storage tank was placed into service in late 2021. The old storage tank was removed in October 2022 and construction of the sculpture using salvaged portions of the tank legs is currently under construction as part of the city’s water treatment facility project.

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