Senior Center recovering from broken water pipe
Published 9:00 pm Monday, March 21, 2005
ARLINGTON – As busted water pipes go, this one could have been worse.
Then again, for a nonprofit group, the almost $7,000 repair cost still hurts.
The Stillaguamish Senior Center was one of three buildings between Smokey Point and Island Crossing that had pipes burst last month when Arlington increased water pressure on a main line.
The center’s pipe ruptured on an outside line, and therefore caused no damage in any buildings. Fixing it required a pressure-reducing valve at the main line to be installed.
Jo Olson, executive director of the Stillaguamish Senior Center, is hoping the cost doesn’t rise. The center is still waiting to hear about an additional fix that might be necessary.
City officials gave the senior center plenty of notice about the pressure increase, Olson said. “The city was not at fault,” she added.
Marysville originally installed the main water pipe north to Island Crossing in previous decades. Arlington recently purchased the system from Marysville, said Paul Richart, Arlington’s interim public works director.
Arlington’s water system runs on 40 to 50 pounds of pressure more than Marysville, Richart said. To avoid blowing out smaller pipes that connect to homes, residents were told to install pressure-reducing valves.
The city gave several months of advance notice, Richart said.
The senior center decided to risk it without the valves, Olson said, after estimates showed that a fix would not cost much more than the installation.
On Feb. 8, the pressure was increased, and the leaks showed up that day.
Richart said two other residences had minor leaks that were fixed that day.
The good news, Richart said, is the fire department will get much better flows at the area’s hydrants in case it has to fight a fire there.
The center will have to plan a few more fund-raisers to avoid cuts in existing programs, Olson said. “We’ll have to snap our belts up a little tighter.”
Reporter Scott Morris: 425-339-3292 or smorris@heraldnet.com.
