RAVENNA − A new, $5 million water tower in Ravenna will give the city’s residents better access to water in the event of an emergency.
City officials said the new elevated water storage tank, which replaces the former GE Standpipe, will hold less water than the old tank, but its design will lead to better water pressure and better water quality.
Lower standpipe led to poor water quality, pressure
City Engineer Bob Finney said the old standpipe, located near the former General Electric plant on the city’s northeast side, held 3 million gallons of water each day. He said it’s more water than the city uses in one day, or even two.
The level caused problems with water quality and pressure.
The standpipe was lower to the ground, and water could not turn over as quickly. Another problem, Finney said, was that water only was drawn from the top of the tank, leaving the water at the bottom to stagnate, which affects quality.
Eventually, that poor water quality led to a notice of violation from the Ohio EPA. Water from the tank and levels of the contaminant trihalomethane exceed new, more stringent standards, Finney said previously. When those standards took effect, he said, two sites directly affected by the standpipe had trihalomethane above that standard.
The un-elevated standpipe also led to issues with water pressure, Finney said. Nearby customers at Maple Grove Cemetery, Ravenna High School and nearby factories experienced lower water pressure.
The standpipe was demolished in 2024, about 10 years after it was taken offline. After it went offline, the city was operating with only one water tower, a 500,000-gallon elevated storage tank in Ravenna’s City Park. Using only one tank, Finney said previously, creates “major vulnerability in the case of a large fire or a distribution main break.”
The new tank holds about 775,000 gallons of water today. When both tanks are full, they provide one day of treated water to the city, said Mark Bowen of the city’s engineering department.
Details about the new tower
After the old standpipe was removed, it took about two years to build the new tower.
City officials walked around the base of the tower Aug. 4, checking out the controls that monitored the water levels and quality.
Kevin Bevilacqua, who does maintenance at the city’s water plant, pointed to a green control that measures water levels, and sends that information to the water plant.
“It’s not a good thing to hold that much water,” he said of the old standpipe. “You don’t get good turnover. Water quality is key.”
The new tower is on a hill, leading to better water quality, Bevilacqua said. The height of the tower is 99 feet.
The estimated final cost of the tower was $4.7 million. The city obtained a $250,000 loan from the Ohio Public Works Commission, American Rescue Plan funds of $500,000, a $750,000 Residential Public Infrastructure Program and a $1.438 million H2Ohio Grant, as well as $300,000 from the city’s water fund.
Caldwell Tanks Inc. of Louisville, Kentucky, was the contractor. There were 14 subcontractors on the project, which were managed by the city’s engineering department.
Reporter Diane Smith can be reached at dsmith@recordpub.com.
This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: New Ravenna water tower to improve quality, storage
Reporting by Diane Smith, Ravenna Record-Courier / Record-Courier
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By Diane Smith, Ravenna Record-Courier | USA TODAY Network
