Palo may look to Cedar Rapids, Hiawatha for new water system

The city of Palo has a new $6.645-million federal grant to use to build a new drinking water system.

At the same time, Palo also may find itself in an advantageous position in that it has two cities, Hiawatha and Cedar Rapids, with which it can negotiate to provide the water.

Palo Mayor John Harris on Tuesday said the city initially had sought a $9-million grant with the thought of building its own water treatment plant and system. And it still may build its own, the mayor said.

At the same time, Harris said the state of Iowa asked Palo to look at less-costly alternatives, which include piping water from the water facilities in neighboring Hiawatha or Cedar Rapids.

Harris said Palo city officials now will look at the costs of three options: a self-sufficient system or a system that uses either Hiawatha water or Cedar Rapids water.

The Palo grant announcement made Monday by Gov. Chet Culver's office came a few days after the Cedar Rapids City Council had scheduled a meeting for Tuesday to discuss if it makes sense for Cedar Rapids to provide water to Palo, and more broadly, if the city should seek to become something of a regional water provider.

Pat Ball, the city's utilities director, told the council on Tuesday that providing water to the 350 or so households and other customers in Palo would not be a large profit maker for Cedar Rapids' water operation.

Even so, council members told city staff members to move ahead with negotiations with the city of Palo in the spirit of neighborliness.

Council members, though, wondered if providing water service to Palo or other smaller cities would encourage people and businesses to leave Cedar Rapids for the smaller cities.

Bruce Jacobs, the city of Cedar Rapids' utilities engineering manager, pointed out that a move to provide water to more communities outside of Cedar Rapids might be viewed as running counter to the council's preference for infill development and its opposition to urban sprawl.

Vern Zakostelecky, the city's land development coordinator, noted that rural housing developments easily could sprout up in farm fields all along any new water line between Cedar Rapids and Palo.

Only recently, has just such a connection gone in to bring Palo's wastewater to the Cedar Rapids wastewater system.

The city of Cedar Rapids now provides water service to Robins, a few sections of Marion, some rural Linn County developments and the Poweshiek Rural Water Association.

The city's Jacobs said a water line between Cedar Rapids' northwest water plant and Palo would extend about five miles, which he said was a shorter distance than a line to Hiawatha's water plant. Jacobs noted, too, that a Palo line would have to cross a river to get to the Hiawatha plant.

Among other factors, Palo's Harris noted, is what percentage of the water line a city might be willing to help pay for knowing that customers between Palo and Cedar Rapids or Hiawatha also might benefit from the line.