Construction expected to start soon on 2nd village well in Wheeler
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
WHEELER — Construction is expected to start soon on a second well to provide water for residents in the Village of Wheeler.
According to a report from Don Knutson, village clerk-treasurer, presented to the Wheeler Village Board at the September 4 meeting regarding a meeting between Knutson, Rand Bates, director of public works, and Tyler Hastings of CBS Squared, the village’s engineering firm, the bid for drilling the second well that the village received last November is still guaranteed.
Regulations require that Wheeler has two wells and two well houses, but the village has operated with only one municipal well.
The village advertised for bids for the well project last fall and received one proposal.
For the project of drilling a new village well and building a wellhouse, at a total cost of $2.53 million, Wheeler has received a loan of $648,000 from the United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development, an $884,000 grant from USDA and $1 million in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding.
The report presented to the village board notes that USDA has given Wheeler “soft permission” to start the well drilling project, but that CBS Squared is recommending that the project waits until full approval has been received from USDA.
A test well will be drilled as soon as final USDA approval has been received and Bates has finished preparing the site.
The plans for the well and pump should involve consulting with Ehlers, the village’s financial consultant, about working with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin concerning a rate study, the report states.
For the sewer project, which includes installing a new lift station, the village has received a USDA loan of $741,000, a USDA grant for $1.265 million, $500,000 in CDBG funds, and will use $27,000 in funds from the Village of Wheeler.
Work on the lift station can begin as soon as the village receives a right-of-way easement from Canadian National railroad, and Hastings will provide contacts to the village to help expedite the easement, according to the report.
The USDA loans will carry an interest rate of 2.375 percent over 40 years, with annual payments for the water project of $25,279 and annual payments for the sewer project of $28,907.
The last work done on the Wheeler sewer system was in the early 1990s.
Plans for the wastewater treatment lagoons for 2025 include receiving approval to use the seepage cell that was built decades ago but has never been used.
