At first glance, it would be easy to assume that water towers exist to store water.  However, water storage is not the primary function of the tower.  Water towers are tall to provide pressure, so water towers are typically located on high ground, and they are tall enough to provide the necessary pressure to all the houses and businesses in the surrounding area. Elevating the water high above the pipes that distribute it throughout the community ensures that hydrostatic pressure, driven by gravity, forces the water down and through the system. 

The St. Anthony Village water tower, located within Water Tower Park, is a 250,000 gallon tank originally built in the 1970s.  Detailed inspections of the tank indicated the need to rehabilitate the interior and exterior of the tank to ensure the community gets the most out of its investment while also maintaining a safe drinking water supply.  Winter 2021, the City received bids to complete the rehabilitation of the tower with a schedule to begin the work Spring 2022.

Project Updates

Sept. 16, 2022

Exterior coatings were completed, and the water tower was brought back online the week  of Sept. 12 after multiple rounds of testing.

Aug. 12, 2022

Crews completed repairing and painting the interior of the water tower the week of Aug 1.  

All exterior repairs and the removal of old paint are expected to be completed the week of Aug. 8.  

Next steps will be applying new coatings of paint to the exterior of the water tower.  

The adjacent City playground will continue to be periodically closed during the project so please continue to avoid the areas around the tank when signs are posted.  The project is still on schedule and has an anticipated completion date set for the end of August.

July 27, 2022

The repairs to the infrastructure on the outside of the water tower have been completed. 

The sandblasting of the internal areas are to be completed this week. The sandblasting of the exterior areas of the water tower are scheduled to begin today or tomorrow. 

During this time Water Tower Park will be closed until 3pm daily for the safety of our park patrons. This work is scheduled to last until August 12th, weather dependent.

July 15, 2022

The water tower has been drained and will be offline until the end of August.  To provide water and maintain pressure for all residents, the City will be utilizing the ground storage reservoir and high service pumps.

The contractor working on the rehabilitation project has completed tower repairs, welding, and has installed a containment system to cover the water tower during the coating removal and recoating phase of the project.  

The adjacent playground will be periodically closed during the rehabilitation project, so please avoid the areas around the tank when signs are posted.  For your safety, signs will be posted first thing each morning to notify residents of playground closures.

May 15, 2022

Preliminary work to prepare for the City of St. Anthony water tower rehabilitation project has begun.  

Communications equipment is being relocated from the tower to prepare for the upcoming refinishing project.  

Major work will begin after the completion of the St. Anthony Village 2021-2022 school year, due to the close proximity of the tower and the St. Anthony Village High School.