The City of Towanda, Kansas, recognized it was time to take action. Its aging cast-iron water main infrastructure was experiencing significant water loss due to leaks throughout the distribution network. Each year, millions of gallons of water were escaping into the ground instead of reaching homes and businesses. The City is patching issues as they arise but, due to aging infrastructure, they’re fighting a losing battle.

The ongoing leaks are not only wasting a valuable community resource, but are creating a growing financial burden for the City, as crews are forced to make frequent repairs while paying for water that never reached its customers.

“We’re experiencing volume loss between 30 to 45 percent per month,” explains Sarah Gooding, Towanda city administrator. “That is causing a huge financial impact to the City and residents.”

It was time for a change. Our team partnered with the City to help them determine how to solve their challenge and set them up for future success.

Understanding the issue

The City first needed to clearly understand the overall condition of their system as well as their options, so we conducted a Preliminary Engineering Report (PER). This effort included a review of system conditions, water quality, capacity, and operational needs. Ultimately, it documented the need for improvements.

Based on our findings, we provided the City with replacement options and estimated costs to improve reliability and reduce water loss.

“The PER combined our existing data and lived experience with technical analysis and professional recommendations to name and quantify the challenges,” Gooding says. “It was a critical step in the planning process. Receiving the PER allowed us to formally move from discussing the problem to developing solutions.”

Securing funding for design

Based on the PER findings, the City was ready to move forward with the next steps. But, like many small communities, it first needed to secure funding to make the project a reality.

That’s where our funding team stepped in. They identified the best funding opportunity for this situation, which was a Technical Assistance Grant through the Kansas Water Office (KWO). This grant program helps communities fund planning and engineering activities—such as studies and design—that support drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater projects.

Using the technical analysis and recommendations developed through the PER, our team prepared a compelling grant application to support the City’s funding request.  We also managed the entirety of the grant application process, from developing the application narrative to coordinating the required documentation, allowing the City to stay focused on serving its residents without getting bogged down in the submission details.

The submission was successful, and the KWO awarded the City a $390,000 grant to fully fund the engineering design for the project. This was a huge win for the City as they were able to move forward with design without incurring significant upfront costs or using local funds.

“We’re a small community. Without the grant, it would have been incomprehensible to try to fund the project with local revenues and taxpayer resources,” Gooding shares. “Having that grant made all the difference to move toward a comprehensive solution as opposed to continuing to work piecemeal and hoping we find the leak.”

She continues, “The JEO team knows the funding programs inside and out. Having their knowledge and skill set to package everything up and make it easy for us was huge.”

Designing the solution

With funding secured, the project moved into design and permitting. This included designing the replacement of 14,000 linear feet of water mains that would make the most positive impact throughout the community. While the design doesn’t replace the entire system, it’s a good start.

“When you know what the solution looks like and have broad cost estimates, at least the project is quantifiable, and you can determine what to do to make it happen,” Gooding shares.

Design also included a plan for installation of isolation valves, making it easier for City crews to repair isolated leaks as they arise. It also included a water tower mixing system, which  will reduce stagnant water as incoming water will mix with existing tower water. It also allows for the use of the tower’s entire storage capacity while maintaining water pressure throughout the system.

Identifying construction funding

As part of the design, our team provided planning-level and final cost estimates, giving City leaders the information needed to evaluate future options. The City is currently exploring opportunities to secure funding for construction of the design. Our funding experts will be alongside them throughout the process and ready to assist with funding applications and submissions.