Orange County NC Website
c. The existing domestic water service line extending from the onsite loop will not be <br />usable as designed, but will instead require a connection to the new public <br />(potable) .waterline being constructed by Orange County Schools along Grady <br />Brawn School Road. This work has significant cost and schedule implications. <br />d. The water in the tank system may require periodic discharge and replacement to <br />maintain a bare minimum level of water quality. The water used for this purpose <br />would probably be billed from the Town of Hillsborough at the prevailing domestic <br />water rate. <br />In addition to the above, the ground level tank has another unappealing characteristic. The <br />tank overflow elevation will limit and define the available pressure and flow conditions of the onsite <br />hydrant and sprinkler system, at a level far less than the potential that could exist otherwise. In <br />other words, the Town's water system has quite good static pressure at the school site, but it <br />doesn't have the ability to maintain adequate pressure during high flow (fire flow) conditions, due <br />to various water system constraints in the area. Storing the fire protection water in a relatively low- <br />height tank sacrifices the "quite goad" pressure potential for more water volume at "merely <br />adequate" pressure. If future public system improvements are made by the Town or others, the <br />ground level tank option will not allow the school to benefit from the increased capacity, because <br />the tank overflow elevation will always govern the available pressure and flow for the site. <br />Despite the above complications, the ground level tank option does qualify as feasible and <br />adequate. The estimated cost of Option #1 is about $ 350,000, which includes the cost of onsite <br />waterline re-configurations. The system could be in service before the June, 2002 school <br />occupancy date. <br />OPTION #2 -Construction of a new 25D,000 gallon elevated water storage tank at the same <br />location as in Option #1. <br />This tank would be of a conventional golf ball-and-tee shape, and approximately 132 feet <br />high (overflow elevation t 832'). This height would match the hydraulic pressure gradient of the <br />Town's water system in the area, creating a fully compatible. and integrated component of the <br />public water system. This option would greatly increase the degree of fire protection far the <br />adjoining Grady Brown Elementary School, and for Town water customers in the area at large. <br />This compatibility with the Town's pressure gradient will allow the water in the tank to cycle with <br />the normal flow of water in the Town's system, maintaining a fully potable condition in the tank and <br />in connected lines. In addition, the proposed tank volume is large enough to be viable as a <br />municipal asset. For these reasons, this option assumes that the tank will be owned and <br />maintained by the Town of Hillsborough, as part of the Town's public utilities infrastructure. <br />In addition to the obvious benefits of an elevated tank as described above, Option #2 has <br />other meaningful benefits, as follows: <br />a. No parallel non-potable waterline would be required along Grady Brown School <br />Road. <br />-2- <br />